Fireflies
by Aesyl
Summary: AU "There's more to life than just numbers, wouldn't you agree?"
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Saki, it's characters, etc, etc. The only thing I _do_ own is the plot and a few original characters.

Please don't expect too much.

Also, I only recently started playing Riichi Mahjong, so if anyone wants to play on Tenhou with me and a few friends, just drop me a PM.

Special thanks to Lestaki and Yingke for listening to me ramble about this and reading my walls of text.

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**Chapter One**

It was a hot summer day, and the dismayed groaning of Yuuki Kataoka resounded throughout the club room, where the rest of the members had gathered for their usual activities. Saki had just won another game with Rinshan Kaihou, and Nodoka had come a close second. Yuuki trailed behind them significantly in third, and Kyoutaro finished in dead last (although he had the grace to accept his defeat in resigned silence). Mako was enjoying the summer warmth and reading outside on the balcony.

Hisa, as usual, was taking a nap on the infirmary bed (whose presence in the club room had never been explained). Yesterday had been another long night for her, checking over the records that Yumi had given her during the combined training camp. It was difficult to stop once she started to look over them. They were extremely detailed, with further analysis of each player taking up the back section of the small book. She couldn't help but be a little overwhelmed at how much effort Yumi put into this, even though she was in her last year and very likely busy studying for her entrance exams.

The mobile phone next to the pillow suddenly started to vibrate, stirring Hisa from her sleep. It inched towards her slowly, with the vibrations helping it along. She cracked a sleepy eye open and focused it on the mobile's outer LCD.

_Hitoshi-kun._

As the name finally registered in her sleep-addled brain, Hisa jolted to her feet and flipped open the phone. His warm, gravelly voice greeted her as she pressed the cold plastic to her ears.

"_Hey there, sleepyhead."_

"I wouldn't be if you had called me earlier, or later," she retorted calmly. The club president made her across the room towards the balcony. A quick glance at the mahjong table showed that Kyoutaro had a good hand, but she knew it could become a bigger hand with the right discards and calls. She shrugged and resolved to tell him later.

"_How did the tournament go? I heard Kazekoshi was defeated again this year. Poor girls."_

Hisa smirked a little at hearing that. It was so typical of him to sympathize with the wrong side.

"Their captain managed to finish first in the individuals, so don't feel too bad for them." She paused, then continued dryly, "…and if you knew they lost, you should also know we won. The freshmen this year are really something."

Mako caught her eye as they met on the balcony. They both grinned at Hisa's last statement and Mako shrugged and looked upwards, as if to say, _Well, there's nothing we can do about that_. They waved once to eachother as the bespectacled girl went inside to give the older girl some privacy.

Hitoshi's rumbling laugh came through the earpiece like a minor earthquake. _"Good point. It's a shame you didn't make it to the nationals for the individuals, as well. I wanted to boast to everyone that my fiancé was a national pro mahjong player."_

She sighed a little. "You're getting ahead of yourself there, in more ways than one. The individuals was fun, and that's all I was expecting from it."

"_Sorry, sorry,"_ he quickly apologized, then changed the topic. _"Have you given more thought about it?"_

Hisa rested her elbows against the balcony's railing and looked out over the school grounds. She contemplated feigning ignorance to annoy him for earlier, but decided against it. He was being serious, and she wanted to respect that by responding in kind.

Their upcoming marriage had been in the back of her mind for most of her high school years, as he had proposed to her sometime in her first year. This proposal also had strings attached. Hitoshi Abe was heir to the Abe family, which governed the Abe-gumi, a local yakuza group that was quickly rising in influence and power. Her family was saved from the poverty that had prevented her from attending Kazekoshi, and absorbed as one of the Abe's branch families, but she was required to marry him eventually. They had made good on their part of the deal already, so it was up to her to decide on the wedding date.

She thought the whole situation was ludicrous when he first sat down and explained it all. It was true that her uncle had taught Hitoshi how to play mahjong during his teenage years, and so they had known eachother growing up, but to suddenly save her family without warning and express that sort of interest in her… She had never even considered marriage until he brought it forward.

So, it was only natural for her to keep avoiding the decision of setting a date. She felt a little guilty about it, as he had never been anything but friendly and considerate during the entire time she knew him, but she wanted to put it off for as long as possible without disappointing anyone. As far as she knew, Hitoshi's father was more concerned about expanding their territory than what woman Hitoshi chose to marry, and her own family had left it up to her to decide what to do. A _hell wait_, indeed.

"I'm still not sure. I'm sorry," she answered uncomfortably, as usual whenever this was brought up.

A pause on the other end preceded a quiet, "_I see."_

They were both quiet for a time before Hitoshi spoke up again, his voice brightening up considerably.

"_Have you thought about which university to apply for, at least? If you need any help with studying, I know of a few exceptional tutors. Normally I'd offer to get you a recommendation for whatever university you decided on, but I know you'd probably hit me if I tried."_

The easy laugh that accompanied his statement made Hisa smile gratefully at his willingness to drop the subject.

"I think I'll do fine on my own, but thank you. I might apply for Tokyo University just to see how I do, but otherwise, I'm not sure. I think it would be easier to list the schools I _don't_ want to apply for, to be honest."

They both laughed at that, knowing her penchant for absorbing information like a sponge and spitting it back out as if she was the one who discovered it, so good was her understanding of the material. There was no doubt she'd do well, wherever it was she would eventually enroll in.

"_Work hard, then. I'll be counting on you for bragging rights. You know how I am."_

"Yeah, I do. How has work been for you? And school?" She asked him curiously. He attended a local university for business, which was, perhaps, a little ironic considering his position.

"_Both are fine. Father's been giving me less to do since I'm in university, but most of the negotiations have been working out with little to no disagreements. The schoolwork has been increasing as of late, though. I suppose it's because I'm nearing my final year, and I need to get my thesis ready. Thankfully the classes aren't as awful as my first year. I still get nightmares about that, by the way."_

"Really? I'm sure a big man like you can deal with them just fine. Numbers aren't as scary as they're reputed to be," Hisa offered sagely.

"_Very funny. And this is coming from the girl with crazy luck who has no need to worry about numbers."_

She snorted. "You're exaggerating again. I'm nothing like that. I play how I play, and it just so happens that I tend to win most of the time."

"_And she's so modest, too!"_ He commented in mock-surprise. _"But anyway,"_ he continued seriously,_ "I have to get going. Be sure to visit over your summer break, all right? You know you're always welcome in our house."_

"It's hard to see that place as just a 'house', but I'll definitely stop by. You always have the most interesting people over for mahjong."

"_I know. It's my magnetic charm that brings them here,"_ he quipped glibly.

She shook her head in exasperation. "You do that. Bye."

"_Bye."_

Hisa snapped her phone close and turned her body to rest her back against the railings. She let herself slouch a little and let out a silent sigh. Was she working so hard in school just so she could avoid him for another four years in university? She couldn't explain why she was doing this, all of it. Mahjong was probably the only thing that made sense right now. She enjoyed playing it, and she was almost at a national level as far as her skills were concerned.

_Almost… by only one point._

She wanted to be bitter about it, but she couldn't be bothered. After all, she had already reached her dream of making the team nationals. If she had wanted to win by herself, she would have gone to the individuals tournament starting from her freshman year.

The red-haired president was glad that she went this year, at least. Even disregarding all of the good things that came with coming to a tournament with her mahjong club, one of the better things that happened was her rematch with Mihoko Fukuji after three years. It's been a long time since she played against someone who could play against her while staying calm. Most would start to panic and revolve their whole hand around what she had discarded, without even trying to win. Mihoko, on the other hand, was entirely different.

She absently flicked open her phone and scrolled through her _Contacts_ list and stopped where the girl's name would be if she had her number.

_I should have asked her for her mobile…_

Mako's sudden voice cut through her thoughts.

"You alright? It's getting late. Everyone's gone home already."

Hisa waved off the other girl's worry. "I'm fine. Thanks for telling me. How long were you standing there, anyway?"

The green-haired girl raised an eyebrow. "Long enough to see you staring at your phone like you've never seen one before."

Her friend laughed. "You should have taken a picture of it. I would've enjoyed seeing it."

"Yeah, yeah… So, do you want to head home together, or are you going to stay here a little longer again?"

"I think I'll be here for a little bit more. This will be my last summer in this building, so I have to soak up as much of this feeling as I can."

"You say some really embarrassing things sometimes, you know?" Mako noted with amusement.

"I'm serious! You'll feel exactly the same way next year; I guarantee it!" Hisa grinned.

Mako shook her head in exasperation. "No way. Being club president is going to be so much work. I'll probably be wishing for it to end as soon as possible. I don't know how you manage doing both that _and_ student congress president."

Hisa shrugged nonchalantly. "You manage. Maybe you should run for student congress president while I'm gone."

"You're seriously a demon." Mako sighed in defeat.


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you very much for reading and leaving your kind reviews.

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Mihoko sat patiently at the only non-mahjong table of the Kazekoshi mahjong club room and checked over the records of yesterday's club matches. The coach had left the room shortly to check their mail, and the rest of the club kept half of their attention on the door for any signs of her return. Takako Kubo's reputation as an internationally-ranked mahjong player was almost as well-known as her ferocious temper. It was only through the efforts of Mihoko that the club was usually spared from her unreasonable violence. For some reason, the woman was loathe to vent her displeasure on the blonde senior, but the club had never had the nerve to ask, thankful as they were for the never-ending stream of small mercies that stemmed from their beloved captain.

A small gust of wind ruffled the papers in front of Mihoko (oh, how she wished she could browse using a laptop, instead!) and a soft _click _signaled that the door had been opened and closed. She looked up to see who it was, only to be blinded by a letter thrown in her direction, which landed on top of the records. The rest of the room had gone completely silent, which meant that the person who entered could only be their coach. A few brave souls still managed to sum up their courage to call out _tsumo_ or _ron_. Any other calls were liable to draw the coach's attention to them, which was rarely ever a joyous occasion.

"Finish up your current _hanchan_, and afterwards I'll call out your names if you've got a letter in this pile," Coach Kubo barked out, waving a moderate-sized stack of letters in her hand. She continued, "You're free to go back to your dorms afterwards, though god knows you all need the practice, hopeless as you are – though you'd be even more useless if you've played too much."

The coach didn't bother waiting for a response and instead sat down across from Mihoko, sorting through the letters alphabetically at an efficient pace.

"Thank you for picking up my letter, Coach Kubo," the girl said politely with a warm smile.

She was answered with an absent sound of acknowledgement from the woman in front of her, which made her giggle quietly in response. Coach Kubo was an extremely strict woman, of that there was no doubt, but Mihoko was well aware that she also cared for the club members, and pushed them hard because she wanted them to improve. After all, she was paid based on how many days she showed up at the club room, not on the actual club's success. Any extra effort expended was purely voluntary, although her temper was, perhaps, a little _too_ voluntary.

"Ah… Coach Kubo…?" Kana's hesitant voice caused the two at the table to turn to look at her; one pair of eyes bored and dismissive, and one singular eye kind and inquisitive.

The cat-like girl fidgeted under the former's gaze and quickly spilled out what she had come to announce.

"W-we finished our _hanchans_, Coach."

"Oh. All right. Here's yours."

Kana scrambled to catch the letter that was suddenly tossed at her midsection, struggling not to let it slip from her fingers. The coach rolled her eyes at the scene and began to call out the names of the recipients.

Mihoko took this chance to carefully run a thumb over the return address, recognizing the company seal as that of her father's. It was printed on there in an impersonal font, but the kanji of her name and address were written in the flowing and slightly ornamental handwriting that was so characteristic of her father. It brought a smile to her face. Even though their letters were frequent as a result of their separation due to both her schooling and his business, he never once entertained the thought of using a machine to write either her name or the actual letter itself. At the very least, she was spared from a lack of parental presence due to her mother being a housewife; and a very lively one at that.

Breaking open the wax seal (only her sentimental father would still use wax seals in this day and age) on the other side revealed the letter that was written in traditional free-flowing ink. She always enjoyed reading his letters partly because of the way he wrote the characters. Her father had never practiced calligraphy due to either monetary (in the past) or time (currently) constraints, but he did what he could, and it showed.

_Dear Mihoko-chan,_

_First of all, congratulations on qualifying for the national tournament! I'm very, very proud of you. Your mother was surprised, I'm sure. I can still remember clearly the days when you were reluctant to even touch those tiles, much less focus on winning. Did you face off against anyone of particular note? I know you were anxious about this Ueno-san from the team tournament, but she never competed in the individuals' tournament before, if my memory serves me correctly. (laugh) Well, perhaps not. I saw the numbers that you led by – even if you _had_ met someone challenging, I doubt they had managed to put much of a dent in your overall score. It's a shame that these tournaments only come once a year; I'm aware of how much you love to play these past few years. Next year will be different, though. You'll be qualified to enter in many more tournaments because the age restriction will no longer apply to you, but please be aware that you'll also be going against those who have gained decades of valuable experience. Or would you relish that challenge? (laugh) I'm sorry; I'm preaching to the choir, aren't I? These are all things already know. As for the responses to your last letter…_

_If your club members' morale are that low when you're not around, then perhaps you should change the itinerary of the club activities? If they have something new to work on, chances are they'll be too busy to worry about being depressed. It will also increase their focus and concentration. Also, I've held back on mentioning this before, as your playing style has rarely ever failed you, but perhaps Kazekoshi has been losing these past few tournaments because of their standardized playing style? It's important to understand that not all mahjong players are entirely logical, so one's strategy should always change based on what you know of your opponents. You and I both know this, but it's entirely possible that not all of your fellow members do. Your coach, too. A fearsome woman, that. Gives me the shivers whenever I recall meeting her. Be sure to keep your mother away from her, all right? They might level the city if they ever met._

_On that note, I'm glad that she's calmed down ever since the tournament, although I'm still concerned about how she treats all of you. I know you can handle yourself just fine, but it worries me all the same. Are you absolutely sure you don't want me to do something? It's your last year, after all, so I'd like to make it one of your better school years, at least. And even if you don't want me to do something solely for your behalf, at least it will keep your underclassmen safe from unnecessary abuse from such a coach. Maybe we could convince your aunt to replace her… but that might be impossible, as that would mean downgrading to a non-internationally ranked player for a coach. Either way, I'm sure I can find someone suitable. All you have to do is say the word._

_What are your plans for the summer? I shouldn't be saying this, but I hope you're not planning on holing up in your room and studying the whole time. Be sure to spend some time relaxing. It's the last summer of your youth, right? It's not a bad idea to make some good memories. Maybe even get a boyfriend, but I can't guarantee I won't scare him off. I've said this before, but why don't you ever bring your friends over? It's true that I'm not home as often as I'd like to be, but that doesn't mean that I'm against having visitors in our home. I cannot stress this enough, but you really should enjoy your youth. I'm glad that you've taken to looking after those girls as if they were your own, but no one will be upset if you act your age, as well. There's no need to need to worry yourself over unnecessary things – they've never asked you to do all of those things for them, right? No, don't try to sugarcoat the situation: you've been holding yourself back again, haven't you? That just makes everyone worried, myself especially. We love you dearly, Mihoko-chan, so please show yourself that same respect._

_And in contrast to that previous paragraph, I have a request for you. Can you put aside some of your vacation time to help me out in the office? There are some international investors visiting, as well as a few firms who are interested in partnerships. You were absolutely invaluable to me when we started this company, with your uncanny ability to discern their weaknesses and wrangle impossible deals out of them, and it would be especially helpful if you could do so again. However, please treat this as an unreasonable favor for an old man, not as an order from your dear father. I will not force you if you have other plans, and if you agree but happen to decide that you no longer want to do it, then I will accept that, as well._

_As always, please send my love to your mother when you have the chance, and take care of yourself!_

_Love,_

_Father_

"Hm…" a voice murmured from over her shoulder. Mihoko jumped slightly in shock, as she had been absorbed in reading the letter to notice anything else. She turned her head only to meet her coach's impassive face staring intently at her letter. The woman continued speaking.

"He said something unnecessary again."

"Coach Kubo, you really shouldn't do that…" Mihoko murmured, holding a hand over her heart, which was only just starting to calm down after that scare. "If you wanted to know what was written, I would have gladly told you."

"That takes too long," she defended herself easily. The older woman straightened up from her leaning position and flicked her long blonde hair over her shoulder. She frowned slightly. "If you find my services unsatisfactory, 'all you have to do is say the word,'" Coach Kubo mimicked the words of her father flatly.

The girl smiled ruefully in response to this. "Please don't say it like that, Coach Kubo. You're very important to Kazekoshi; I can't imagine what we'd do without you. You're just a little scary when you get angry - that's hardly unusual for a person. We know you're… uhm… easily excitable only because you care about us so much. Thank you for your efforts." She bowed.

The coach raised an eyebrow at the fluid response, slightly mollified.

"I'm only doing what's necessary. Don't read too much into it."

"Yes, Coach Kubo." Mihoko smiled knowingly and the woman sighed.

"Speaking of letters, your cult is quite devoted to you, to willingly give up their mobile and computer privileges while inside the campus grounds. I never thought I'd see the day when kids would resort to using letters."

The captain shook her head in embarrassment. "No, it's not like that! They still use the school's computer labs."

"…and not much else," her coach finished for her. "Face it, they see you as more of a leader than me. What am I going to do next year without you to motivate them? Kids these days are hard to manage."

"Ah, that's not very fair to both you and the other club members, Coach Kubo. Everyone's capable of much more than they realize." Mihoko paused to quickly wipe away a tear that slipped out. "I just wish there was more I could do to help…"

"You _could_ push them harder. They actually listen to you, instead of just paying lip service like they do with me," the other said bitterly. "You could make them so much better than they are right now, but instead you choose to coddle them. I'd like to ask why, but I'd rather not hear your sentimental logic."

"You're wrong." The Kazekoshi mahjong club captain frowned at her coach. "They listen to you. They do their utmost to follow what you've taught them. Furthermore, they are also people, not machines. They play out of their love for mahjong, just like you and I. Even if we no longer play it as often as they do, it does not lessen our love for it. If anything, we should love it even more because we cannot play it as often as we'd like to. You were too harsh with them before. They feel their mistakes and defeats as keenly as you do at the international level, for you are also as human as they are, no matter how you may pretend otherwise. There's no need to punish them. Being part of the Kazekoshi mahjong club is both a badge of honor and a cross. Each of us understands what it means to stay in this organization and uphold the name of Kazekoshi. Please do not treat us otherwise."

Coach Kubo scoffed and looked away.

"I know. Just because I've complimented you, that doesn't mean I think you're in any position to lecture me. In the end, you're leaving at the end of this year, and I will still be here. Maybe, _maybe_, things will change the way you want them to, but they are just as likely not to."

They both narrowed their eyes, or, in Mihoko's case, her singular eye, at each other. The younger one suddenly smiled and dipped her head as if to forgive the whole incident.

"So, my father mentioned that we should switch our club activities around a little. What do you think of introducing unconventional playing styles so that they will be able to cope with them in outside matches?"

The coach dropped down into her previous seat and thought about it carefully.

"That would prove beneficial, especially since we don't need to worry about tournaments until next year. We'd have time to adapt. Ideally, anyway. I don't expect much when it comes to them."

"Now, now," Mihoko chastised lightly. "Let's focus on how to do this…"

The two hashed out new schedules while the rest of the club left for the day.


	3. Chapter 3

The other day when I was playing on tenhou, I encountered a player named 'tacos~su'. Needless to say, I was tickled. However, their playing style was rather unremarkable. Sir, I do believe you needed more tacos for that game.

Also, this chapter was finished a bit earlier due to the fact that I felt bad the last chapter mostly served as exposition.

Thank you for reading and for leaving reviews.

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Mihoko quietly crept back to her dormitory room, mindful of how late it was. She inserted the key to her room into the lock and slowly turned it, applying pressure only when the key ran into resistance, and quickly easing up when it gave a soft '_click'_. She gave a silent prayer of thanks that the locks were mechanical, rather than electronic, despite the extra funds that Kazekoshi was reported to have.

Considering how much effort the captain put into moving as quietly as possible, it came as a surprise to her to find that her roommate was still awake, and was quietly reading a book in her bed.

"Welcome back." The other girl snapped her book shut and put it away on the bedside table. Her reading glasses quickly followed suit. The stern look she gave Mihoko was characteristic of her, and the blonde smiled sheepishly.

"Ah, I'm back, Naoko-san."

"Yes, I see that. You're back later than usual. I was worried." She frowned. "I wanted to call you to check if everything was all right, but then I remembered you didn't have a mobile. It's really inconvenient, you know."

Tears welled up in the blonde's eyes. Oh, if only she hadn't decided to draw up new schedules so impulsively! Naoko had probably spent the whole night rampaging around the dormitories and antagonizing the freshmen in an effort to find out if she was safe. She wasn't sure if she felt more sorry for her fellow schoolmates or Naoko. Even so, it was another person that she had caused unnecessary trouble for, and she deeply regretted it.

Her black-haired friend widened in surprise at the sudden onslaught of tears and scrambled off her bed to grab at the box of tissues.

"H-hold on now, there's no reason for you to be upset! It's all right, really! I'm just glad nothing happened to you. The important thing is that you're here, and you're in perfectly good shape. Right? Right?"

A tissue was quickly offered and Mihoko took it gingerly, wiping away at the rivulets that had run down her face. She knew that she was spoiling herself by crying so much, but she couldn't help it. She hated inconveniencing others to the point that it would give her an ulcer if she kept it in.

"I'm sorry, Naoko-san. I should have told you I was staying out late tonight…"

"I'm telling you, it's fine. No harm was done." She patted the blonde's head comfortingly. "So can I ask what you were doing?"

Mihoko brightened up at the new topic. "Father mentioned it would be a good idea to switch things up a bit at the mahjong club, so the coach and I stayed and worked out new schedules and training menus."

"Ah, that explains it." Naoko nodded to herself. "That woman didn't do anything strange, did she? I mean, you two were there… all alone… for hours…" She dragged out the words pointedly, and the captain blushed, imagining herself in that same situation with an entirely different person.

"Please don't say such things, Naoko-san. That's impossible." She paused and admitted quietly, "…and a little scary."

The other girl laughed. "Definitely. Well, you should get ready to sleep soon. Are you staying at the dorms over summer break, or am I going to be alone again this year?"

Mihoko paused while gathering her toiletries to answer, her tone apologetic. "Ah, I'm sorry! I'll be heading home this time, as well."

The black-haired girl sat on her bed and bounced a little on it, noting how floppy the mattress seemed to be. "I thought as much. Maybe I should have joined the mahjong club, too… but I guess it's too late for that."

The blonde furrowed her brows in thought. "But even if you joined the mahjong club, it's not like we ever have any summer trips."

Her friend looked up in surprise. "You don't even meet up or do anything together over the break?"

"No." Mihoko shook her head. "I try to be considerate of their summer plans, so I never schedule anything over the summer. I think Coach Kubo also tends to go overseas during the break."

"That's so like you. Well, maybe I'll crash over at your place once or twice if it gets too boring here."

"That would be nice. Father would be glad of that, I think."

"He would. But I hope I won't be forced to play mahjong with you people. From the way you speak of her, it sounds like your mother would crush my soul if I played against her," Naoko said with a shudder.

The captain had to hold back a giggle. "Father isn't a pushover, either, so please prepare yourself properly."

"Ugh." Naoko threw a small pillow at her friend. "You have a hidden dark side, too, don't you? Admit it, you _want_ to see me suffer a heart-wrenching defeat."

Mihoko grinned cheekily. "It's not like I was hiding it."

"Oh, _you_! Get out! You smelly person, out!" Naoko shoved her playfully out the door to the showers and she went along with it. The blonde was planning on taking a quick shower, anyway.

As she washed away her worries of the past day, one worry that had been present since the end of the prefectural tournaments niggled at the back of her mind. What was she going to do over the summer?

There was not much reason to worry about entrance exams, as she had been studying the pertinent material diligently ever since she started high school, and saw no need to cram frantically at any point in the future. Spending time with her fellow mahjong club members would be… odd. She felt responsible for them, and she worried over them daily. It would be more of a babysitting event rather than a social one, much as it pained her to admit it. Furthermore, she'd rather not intrude upon their private lives for the sake of her own whims.

A boyfriend? Mihoko shook her head furiously at the thought, blushing slightly when someone else appeared in her mind's eye. No. That would be… impossible… She wouldn't even see Ueno, anyway. Wait, what was she thinking? Ueno as her… her… no. That's definitely impossible. She couldn't even think of the girl by her first name. It would be silly to revolve any of her future around her, never mind her last summer vacation as a high school student, which should be spent carefully and memorably. But… spending it with Ueno would certainly make it memorable, and Ueno being who she is, Mihoko would make every effort to handle every moment with her with care.

"Hi…" Her voice trailed off uncertainly.

She sighed. Maybe she should have let Ueno win by a larger margin that day, just for those extra two points. Her pride as the captain and her teenage desires warred with each other, and she felt keenly what it meant to have an uncertain future. It was only a summer, but she didn't want it to be a summer of wasted potential.

_I want to see her again._

There must be something that she could do… that wouldn't make her look like a stalker, hopefully. Although it's not like she would be able to do anything without enlisting the help of a friend, which would be unacceptable.

Wait. Kiyosumi had two finalists. Would Ueno be the type of buchou to stay and support her members even though she herself did not qualify for the nationals? Judging from her behavior at the training camp, and how she had never participated in the individuals' previously, it seems likely that she would also come to the nationals to cheer on her underclassmen. But a month is still a long time to wait for just a few minutes of contact, if she even saw her in the undoubtedly crowded lobby of the national tournament building.

It can't be helped, then. She'll take what she can get. Maybe by then a new mobile phone will come out that can withstand her electrical impulses. If not, then she'd just have to invent one. Until then, at least she'll have Naoko to keep her company once in a while.

"Hey, Mihoko-chan," Naoko greeted once she returned to their room.

"Yes?" She busied herself with putting away her toiletries and drying her hair.

"IF you come back with a boyfriend, I'll never forgive you." Her friend said casually.

A blush creeped up the blonde girl's neck. "W-what makes you say that?"

The other girl stared at her in surprise. She could see the bright red even in the half-darkness of their room, which was illuminated only by the two small lamps near their beds.

"You… you actually _like_ someone, and you didn't tell me?!"

"Sshh!" Mihoko gestured frantically with her arms, her towel coming dangerously close to falling off of her completely. "We'll get yelled at by the dormitory supervisor!"

"Oops." Naoko grinned sheepishly, before getting back on track. She continued more quietly, "…but this is serious! That's important information that you're honor-bound to tell me, your beloved roommate."

"_Honor-bound_?" The blonde asked in amusement.

"I picked it up from a book I just read – you should read it, by the way – and don't change the subject!"

"It's not like that. We just met once during the middle school mahjong prefecturals. She beat me, but she stopped coming to her matches, and never appeared in a tournament until this year."

"I love how you try to dismiss it as nothing special, but then you unfold this really dramatic story," Naoko commented dryly. "So? What happened there? You never talk about your matches."

"We were in two matches together," Mihoko continued reluctantly, "and we each won one."

"Interesting, interesting. And then?" Her friend prodded.

The blonde blinked. "…That was it."

"What? You can't just leave your stories half-finished like that," the bespectacled girl chastised.

She sighed. "This isn't a story, Naoko-san…"

"Oh, that's right." Naoko punched her palm in realization. "I'm supposed to give you advice. Okay, listen. Wait for a rainy day, and get some flowers. I'll help you find out where she lives. When she comes home from school…"

Mihoko only shook her head slightly as she listened to her friend ramble on with her mad plan. She had no doubt it was picked up from a best-selling romance novel.

"Ah… Naoko-san? If possible, I'd like to not appear to be obsessed with her," she offered tentatively.

"So you _do_ admit you like her!" Her friend exclaimed excitedly. "Excellent. Well, she won't know you're interested unless you make the first move. She's the confident type, right? That usually translates into meaning she's also oblivious to this sort of thing."

Mihoko wanted to bury herself right then. This wasn't the scenario she was hoping for at all. Not at all. Regardless, she tried to struggle onwards.

"I don't think it's very fair to categorize people into such simple labels, Naoko-san."

"I wouldn't give her such a simple label if you'd give me more details," she defended. "And even then, I'd need to see her in action in order to thresh out a proper battle plan."

"Battle… plan…?"

"Right! As they say, _all's fair in love and war_. Although, really, it should be love _is_ war. Poor girl, to have to go up against my tactics… she'll have no chance. No chance at all!" A strange light began to glow within Naoko's eyes, and Mihoko stepped back a little.

"You're strangely excited about all of this… Maybe it would be best if we… ah… slept on it?" Mihoko suggested, mostly to delay the oncoming train that was Naoko's enthusiasm.

"Excellent idea, _captain_. We'll be up tomorrow morning at 0600 to go over the details in full."

The blonde couldn't help but quip, "_Can_ you wake up? That's our usual wake-up time, and you usually have trouble then."

Naoko was undaunted. "Of course I can wake up! We're on a mission!"

A sigh. "Aye-aye."


	4. Chapter 4

Thank you so much for all of the encouragement! Really, I'm glad you all enjoy it. Also, much thanks to Akayuuki for directing (probably a significant amount of) readers here. I'm honored to even be mentioned on your blog.

Also, please excuse any minor errors of the second half. I was (am) half-asleep when I wrote that part, but I wanted to finish it before I went to bed.

* * *

Hisa shifted the bags she carried higher up on her shoulders to make it easier for her to press the intercom switch at her front gate.

"Takei residence. Please state your business," the cold mechanical voice came through, sounding bored. Hisa had to stifle a giggle at hearing the familiar drawl of her household's current maid. Haru Sato, age 23, a woman with a temper as short as her name. She had come into their service scarcely a year ago, and had become a permanent fixture of their family, to the surprise of everyone, the woman herself included. No one had thought that this abrupt young lady would stay longer than a week, but her quick thinking under unusual situations and reliability proved indispensable, so they put up with her occasional snarky commentary.

"It's Hisa," the girl said shortly, knowing how the other female detested flowery speech.

As she waited for the gate to be opened, Hisa looked upwards at the new tiling on the gate's roof. It was previously a dark red, but was now replaced with a slate gray. She wondered what caused the sudden change; her father was not the sort of man who gave into whims easily.

The large gates creaked open slowly, revealing the small Japanese-styled mansion. Hisa couldn't help but stare it at for a moment, reveling in how this opulant – to her, anyway – place was now her home during her breaks from school.

"I'd like to say '_Welcome home, ojou-sama,_' but you seem preoccupied outside the front gates," her maid noted dryly. She was dressed in a somber dark purple everyday kimono. "Shall I shut them and come back for you later?"

"Ah, no, that's all right," Hisa answered haltingly, surprised at the woman's sudden appearance - or, not so sudden, if she had been more aware of herself. "It's good to be back." She smiled at the maid, who took her duffle bag, while Hisa kept her backpack on her shoulders.

"It's good to have you back, _ojou-sama_," she replied a little theatrically.

Hisa smirked at that and allowed herself to be led inside on the stone-lined graveled pathway. The countless pieces of rock shifted under their feet, and the girl couldn't help but entertain thoughts of sinking into them as if they were quicksand. She marveled at the various plants that sprung up around them.

She turned to the older woman. "These weren't here when I left for Tokyo, were they?"

"No, your memory serves you correctly," Haru agreed. "These were planted under the direction of Rin-sama. I believe the previous stone garden disagreed with her. "

They both shared an amused look at that, knowing that her mother would have been much more empathic than how the maid described it. While her father may not be a whimsical man, her mother certainly was.

"Where is mother, by the way?" Hisa asked suddenly.

Haru shifted the duffle bag slightly as she walked. "Rin-sama is out again, no doubt looking for more things to buy for you."

The younger girl laughed at that. "Really? I'm glad she's still as energetic as always."

"I wonder if that's the proper interpretation of it…" the maid murmured thoughtfully.

Hisa _tsk_'d in mock-chastisement. "Is that the proper way to talk about your employers?"

"My apologies, _ojou-sama_," she replied seriously.

"Sarcasm isn't allowed, either," the girl continued.

"Yes, _ojou-sama._"

They looked at each other and grinned wildly, holding in their laughter, lest they disturbed the peaceful quiet of the mansion.

"Ah, I've really missed you, Haru-san," Hisa declared, wiping away a tear from her mirth.

"We've missed you very much as well, ojou-sama," she responded. "Goshujin-sama should be in his study, if you wish to meet with him presently."

The redhead nodded. "Thanks. I think I will. And what of uncle?"

"He's still away in Hokkaido for business," the maid replied shortly.

"Ah." Hisa nodded, understanding that 'business' translated into 'playing an important match as a rep player for the yakuza'. "Any idea when he'll be back?"

"I'm afraid not, ojou-sama. He said to send you his regards when you arrived."

"Well, at least he was thinking of me," she murmured thoughtfully.

"He always is. You're horribly spoiled that way," Haru teased.

"There's nothing wrong with that. I've become a highly accomplished young woman, haven't I?" Hisa twirled once and posed.

Haru gave her a flat look. "I'd clap for you, _ojou-sama_, except my hands are currently full."

"Yes, yes, thank you for your efforts," the girl responded, only half joking. She really did appreciate Haru's hard work.

The two paused as they entered the mansion and took off their shoes, switching them with nondescript slippers instead.

Hisa turned to the other woman. "Would it be too much trouble for you to also take my backpack up to my room?"

"No, it would be my pleasure, ojou-sama." Haru took the offered backpack and carried the two bags off in the direction of Hisa's room.

"Hm, now then…" she murmured to herself once the other's footsteps faded away into the distance.

She tied up her hair into two pigtails as neatly as she could, hoping her father wouldn't mind her somewhat disheveled appearance. The train ride had been long, after all, and with the way people were shoved up against each other and jostled about, it's hard to keep from becoming rumpled up like a piece of paper. She began to push up her right sleeve subconsciously before shaking her head and bringing it back down. This wasn't a mahjong match, so why was she nervous?

Hisa checked herself quickly using a hallway mirror. She tried to tuck a lock of hair that had escaped her pigtails behind one ear, but it refused to stay there and slowly drifted back to the side of her face. An exaggerated sigh directly aimed at it made the lock flutter in the air for a moment before it planted itself once more against her face. The girl shrugged and decided to write it off as another one of her many charm points.

She reached the screen door that separated the hallway from his study, and kneeled in front of it, tucking the skirt of her school uniform underneath her legs. She slowly opened the screen door slightly and paused, which warned her father that the door would soon be opened fully. Then she slid it wide enough to let her through, and entered by sliding on her knees, which were covered by her skirt. She turned around to shut the sliding door quietly, and finally faced her father.

Daichi Takei stared at her in utter confusion, carefully putting down the pen he was holding. "I'm delighted to see you, daughter, but was it necessary to enter so formally?"

Hisa stood up and walked over to the opposite end of the large table where her father was going over some documents. He looked particularly grand today in a dark blue kimono, which she had never seen before. She sat down once again on her knees, her body getting used to sitting on the floor again after months of sitting in chairs.

The girl grinned at her father. "I thought I'd go with the theme of this setting. Life would be boring if we did everything the same way we always do," she reasoned.

He cracked out a smile. "That's certainly true. However," he advised her, "you should get used to these living arrangements if you plan on going along with Hitoshi-kun's plan."

Ah, so that's why she was nervous. Only he would bring up the topic so frankly, and she respected him too much to dodge it.

"I'm sorry, father." She bowed deeply, her pigtails touching the floor. "I'm still hesitant about the whole affair."

"I see. Naturally, that means you haven't decided on a date, either?" He asked rhetorically.

The silence was all the answer he needed, and Daichi sighed wearily.

"You cannot keep him waiting for long, Hisa."

The emphasis he put on the word 'you' made her flinch from her position on the floor, and she slowly rose to meet his grave eyes. This was her decision, and hers alone. A part of her wanted to break off the engagement and avoid the part of growing up that everyone expected her to fulfill. To become married, abandoning all hope of embarking on a successful career, dedicating her life to one man, and then shouldering all the responsibilities of raising children alone while that man was away working... It was a bleak future, but what of the alternative? Watching as her family is once again impoverished, except this time it would be all of her own doing? She wouldn't have the excuse of ignorance like last time. She had to make sure it _is_ the last time. But at the cost of her future? She might not know what she wanted to do with it, but an uncertain future was preferable to a chained one.

"I considered placing it after I graduated from university, father." Her eyes were hopeful that he would approve, but she kept the rest of her face schooled into calmness. It wouldn't do to appear weak and childish.

"If that is what you wish. Of course, my acquiescence means little. Ultimately it's up to you and Hitoshi-kun." He frowned slightly. "But bear in mind that the longer you put it off, the greater the chance that your doubts will grow into serious misgivings, which will make it impossible for you to carry out your promise."

Hisa bowed again, thankful that he at least did not strongly object. "I understand, father."

"But enough of this serious talk," Daichi said dismissively with a wave of his hand. "It's good to have you at home once more. Your mother will be pleased to hear you've made it back safely. Is our old apartment still treating you well?"

She smiled in relief at the change of topic. The guilt that knotted up her insides whenever it was brought up started to ease into the back of her mind once more.

"It is," she smiled. "I feel a little lonely being there by myself, though. Living there with you and mother, and of course uncle, made it seem smaller than it actually is."

"That's understandable." He nodded. "I hope being student congress president hasn't affected your grades any?"

"Ah, no," she denied, glad that he was one of the few people who got the name her school's elective assembly correct. "We don't do quite as much as one would think, to be honest. I have more work as the president of our school's mahjong club, ironically enough." She decided not to mention that she often left most of the work up to the student congress' vice president.

"Is that so? I hear you qualified for the team nationals."

"We did. I think uncle would be surprised at who we managed to pull in this year." She frowned thoughtfully. "Well, not surprised, exactly. More like annoyed."

"They're 'loved by the tiles', are they?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"One of them, at least. The other is a very logical player, and our last is good only during the east round," Hisa explained succinctly.

"I see. And how did you fare?"

"Well enough. To be fair, the players I went against were merely above average. My underclassmen had the misfortune to be pitted against those who were… shall we say, 'abnormally lucky'." She smiled. "But that's what made it interesting for them, I think. I'm just glad we were able to find enough people for the tournament."

"Hisa, what did I tell you about false modesty?" Daichi narrowed his eyes at her in amusement.

"I'm sorry, father," she replied, grinning. "I meant to say that I was fairly sure we would be able to advance to the nationals, and now that we have, there's a high chance of us winning the title."

He nodded in approval of her rephrasing. "Youth should never be wasted, and it's good to hear you're putting yours to good use."

Hisa eyed her father in surprise. "You don't… you don't think you're _old_, do you father?"

Daichi chuckled. "My bones certainly think so. As for me, I'd rather not take any chances."

"Hm… You should take better care of yourself, father. Maybe I should ask Haru-san to let me borrow the kitchen tonight to make you my special soup," she suggested excitedly.

"No!" Her father suddenly stood up. Hisa stared at him. He sat down, nonplussed, and repeated himself. "Ahem. I mean, no, that's not necessary. You must be tired from the long train ride. I'll be sure to tell the cooks to prepare your favorite side dishes tonight, instead. You should go rest up before then, Hisa. Hopefully your mother will be back soon."

She continued to watch him warily, but agreed to take her leave.

As she slid open the door to her room normally, she noticed a wrapped package on the table in the middle of her room. Seeing it made her smile, since the only person who would do something like that was her mother. Hisa gingerly walked over to it, and unwrapped the package carefully, revealing a stationary set. She turned it over in her hands bemusedly, wondering when she would ever use it. Most of the people she contacted with were done so through the computer or her mobile phone. Well, considering how rarely she saw her mother, perhaps she'd start using it to maintain communications with her.

It wasn't that her mother was hard to find, exactly, nor did she experience wanderlust. The love was there in their relationship, but Rin Takei was a very shy woman. Painfully so. The more she cared for a person, the less she could stand being in the same room with them without running out of the door in anxiety. One could say that she was a social perfectionist, and that if her social interactions were less than flawless with the people she loved, she would break down. It was probably a sort of mental disorder, Hisa mused, but everyone just treated it as another odd quirk of hers. After all, the only people it affected were her husband and only child (how did she manage to even conceive, considering her circumstances?), who both accepted it and loved her unconditionally despite it. Besides, the woman did show that she cared in other ways, like showering Hisa with unexpected little gifts that were thoughtfully picked out (never had one gone to waste – something always came up that required Hisa to use them, if their practicality wasn't already apparent).

The sliding door was suddenly opened a fraction, and Hisa turned to face her room's would-be visitor. When it was opened fully, Haru entered bearing a tray with a cup of hot tea and a small plate of snacks. She placed them on the table and hugged the tray to her chest lightly afterwards.

"Thank you, Haru-san," the girl said in grateful surprise. She still wasn't used to this sudden change in lifestyles.

"You're welcome, ojou-sama." She added, "Try not to eat too much, for various reasons."

"Yes, yes, thank you for your efforts." This short exchange had become routine for them, and each found it amusing in a small way.

When the maid left, Hisa put away the stationary set in her desk. She turned to glance over her room. It was different from the one in the apartment in Tokyo in a few key ways. For one, most of the floors of her house were covered in tatami mats, including her room, while the apartment was mostly wood or covered in carpet. Her bed here was a futon, stored away behind the sliding doors of her closet. Honestly, she much preferred the raised bed of the apartment, but she was glad to even have a bed at all, so she never complained. Her room at home also had more general space, which was made obvious by the decent-sized table sitting in the middle of it, as well as the two filled book cases lined up against the walls, neither of which were present in her room in the apartment.

Then she noticed something that had not been there before. A katana which rested above a short stand near her window. Hisa narrowed her eyes at it. While the gift from her mother had been welcome, this gift was not, as she similarly knew who sent it. Hitoshi. It was starting to feel like gentle pressure from him, or, if she wanted to phrase it less charitably, bribery.

She sighed and lied spread-eagled on the tatami floor, staring up into the ceiling.

Her tea became cold without her noticing, its last wisps of heat disappearing before it ever reached the ceiling she was staring so intently at.


	5. Chapter 5

Thank you for reading and sticking with me so far. We really do have a long road ahead of us.

Terminology:

_Keiko_ – accountant

_Saiko-komon_ – administrator, usually only one per yakuza group. Oversees the business side of the group. Communicates directly with the head of the yakuza group.

_-gumi_ – suffix of any yakuza group. Can also be used at the end of gang names and other similar groups.

_Aniki_ – roughly translates to "older brother". Usually used towards one's superior in a yakuza, if one's superior is not too highly ranked.

_Goshujin-sama_ – "Master" in the context of a master-servant relationship.

Chuo University – premier law school in Tokyo, Japan.

Keio University – One of the top universities in Japan. It's at the same level as Tokyo University. Also located in Tokyo.

Waseda University – Another top university in Tokyo, Japan.

Also, a note on honorifics. I've abandoned the use of _otou-(chan/san/sama)_ and _okaa-(chan/san/sama)_ as I've decided that the two girls are pretty casual with their parents, but not _too_ casual. So it's understood that they both use _otou-san_ and _okaa-san_ to refer their parents. Everything else will be preserved, as it will help to highlight at what stage of intimacy the two girls are at, as well as their relationships with others.

* * *

Hisa yawned, still in her pajamas, as she made her way down the stairs into the living room. She had no doubt everyone was already up and about, and was unsurprised to find her father already drinking tea and reading the newspaper when she slid open the door. What she _was_ surprised to see, however, were the two bleeding messes sitting (_Were_ they sitting? She didn't want to look past the blood to find out.) across from her father at the table.

She froze in the act of stepping into the room. "What the hell happened?!"

Daichi snapped the newspaper in the air to straighten it out. "Hisa, language," he said sternly from behind it.

"Sorry, fath-," she started to apologize automatically before shaking her head. "Please excuse me, father, but that isn't the point! Let me go get a few bandages and... more… bandages…" she trailed off as she left the room, leaving the door rudely opened in her haste.

"Close the door, will you?" He asked the body that was closest to the door, who complied silently, dripping even more blood over the tatami mats from his movements.

When Hisa returned with an armful of medical supplies and a bowl of warm water, she was annoyed to find it was closed. She edged the door open with her toes inelegantly and went to clean the wounds of the person nearest the door first, throwing an reproachful look over her shoulder at her seemingly uncaring father, who couldn't see anything from behind the newspaper.

"Thank you very much, ojou-sama, but it's really not as bad as it looks. They're only surface wounds," the other person tried to placate her.

"I'm not sure what's worse: the fact that you think bleeding all over the floor isn't much cause for concern, or the fact that you have more than one wound and none of you are worried by blood loss," she said bluntly, trying to keep the tone of incredulity out of her voice. Becoming hysterical wouldn't help anyone.

As she cleaned their wounds and finished gently wrapping bandages around them, however, she found he was right. They really were only surface wounds, and it scared her that her father was so calm about the whole situation. Was he more used to bloodshed than he let on? What kind of life did he lead before settling down? She had never asked, and he had never elaborated.

Hisa leaned back to check over her handiwork when she was finished and nodded to herself in satisfaction. The two were revealed to be junior members of the yakuza organization that the Takei family now belonged to, and they looked scarcely older than Hisa's own eighteen years. She was used to having them over their house at this point, but rarely in such a state. Their wounds seemed to be made by knives. A knife fight, then. But with whom? She thought they had total control of this region by now.

"Who did this to you?" Hisa asked straightforwardly.

The two looked to each other first before glancing at her father uncertainly, who still hid his face behind the newspapers. It was times like these that Hisa wished she could do something irrational just to provoke a reaction out of her placid father.

"You may speak freely to her. She's not as useless as those other girls her age," he said frankly.

Hisa stifled a twitch at that, but understood her father was doing her a favor. The yakuza rarely involved their women in their affairs, and even more rarely treated them as equals. By doing this, her father was allowing her to gain a small level of respect from them.

"We were ambushed by a large group of delinquents from behind," said one of them, who had a split lip and a cut near his eye.

The other one piped up. "I think they were trying to reclaim a few of the streets on the outer edges of our territory, but I can't be sure. It's also possible that a rival yakuza group paid them to start poaching on us." His eye had a swelling bruise and his bright green suit contrasted with the bloodstains that were inevitably setting in.

"I see," Hisa replied, unsure of how to respond. Her father was aware of this already, she was sure, and she didn't want to be redundant by repeating what he probably said.

"Well, that's the situation," her father stated, finally folding the papers and setting them on the table. "It's possible that they know our household is affiliated with the Abe-gumi, so please take care when leaving the house."

"Yes, father," she complied. Hisa turned back towards the two injured. "Would you like some breakfast? I still haven't had any myself, and I'd be glad for some company." They were sure to leak out more information to a pretty girl (Who was still only clothed in her sleepwear, and was well-aware of this fact.) in an effort to show off, away from the presence of her father, who she knew never ate breakfast.

"That would be great!" The one in the green suit said excitedly, then checked himself. "I mean, with your permission, aniki."

"It's fine with me," her father said curtly. "She was the one who extended this invitation, after all."

"Great!" Hisa said with false cheeriness. "Let me show you into the dining room, then, and tell the cooks to prepare a meal full of red meat to help you restore your blood."

The two looked at her with a newfound sense of respect at the last part of her sentence. Red meat! This early in the morning! There was little that could top such a treat.

As Hisa walked to the local convenience store later, she mused over what the boys (She could hardly call them men if a mere high school girl could manipulate them so easily.) told her during breakfast. Things had been rough for those who were in charge of the outer boundaries of their territory because of similar incidences that have been occurring lately. It seemed that while summer brought in more profits for the Abe-gumi, it also brought more trouble as it was easier for various no-name groups to move around in the larger crowds. As her father was merely a _keiko_ (Albeit a well-respected one who was likely to become promoted to _saiko-komon_ in the next few years, if he was diligent.), there was little he could do to provide active support. The most he could do for them was patch up their wounds and send them on their way. While a part of Hisa wanted to do something to stop her people (When did they become 'her people'?) from getting hurt, she was also glad that her father wasn't in the direct line of fire.

But even with that, she lamented that today's event caused their medical supplies to drop to nearly nonexistent levels. Hisa hated shopping for boring things, even if they were necessary.

She arrived at the store and paused inside the entrance to let the cool air-conditioned air wash over her. It was really starting to heat up outside. She was glad that she had left in the morning rather than at noon. A flash of familiar blonde hair and a suspiciously closed eye disappeared into a nearby aisle. Hisa blinked.

_Wasn't that… Mihoko Fukuji?_

The redhead grabbed a shopping basket and headed towards the aisle where the other girl disappeared to. When she reached it and glanced sideways to check if anyone was there, she found it vacant. Hisa frowned in puzzlement.

_But I swear she was just here a moment ago... I better not be seeing ghosts._

She sighed and decided to pick up what she needed instead of running all over the store to find someone who might not even be there.

"Gauze… gauze… gauze… Ah, here we go." Seeing the rows of different brands of gauze, Hisa leaned down to pick up a few boxes of her family's usual brand and straightened up. She heard a small gasp and a softly muttered, "Ueno-san…" and turned her head towards the voice behind her.

"Oh, hello!" Hisa smiled warmly, glad she wasn't seeing things earlier. "It's been a while since our combined training camp, hasn't it? How have you been since then?" She noted the curious blush that slowly spread across the other girl's face and wondered if she was feeling well. Perhaps she was coming down with a fever?

"I've been well, thank you," Mihoko answered awkwardly. She fell silent, and Hisa took it in stride. She assumed that the Kazekoshi captain was probably shy when taken out of a mahjong context.

The redhead frowned as she noticed something. "What a shame," she said, impulsively bringing up her hand to the right side of the blonde's face with her left. "Your eyes are so pretty… you really should keep both of them open." She felt the other girl lean into her palm and was surprised at how comfortably warm and soft her skin was. She ran a thumb over the other girl's cheek to ingrain the pleasant feeling into her memory.

Mihoko's blush grew deeper. "I… That is… Ueno-san…" She started to look panicked and Hisa drew her hand away quickly.

"I'm really sorry; that was rude of me," the redhead apologized sincerely. "Are you all right? Honestly, I don't know what came over me."

"N-no, I'm fine," the blonde answered, a little earnestly. She seemed to be steeling herself against something as her blush died down to a light pinkish hue. Hisa wondered if perhaps it was a biological ability of hers. It looked useful.

"More importantly, I'm sorry for disturbing your shopping, Ueno-san. I'm almost done, so I'll be leaving soon," Mihoko explained with a face that clearly said she wanted to do nothing of the sort, but didn't want to impose, either.

Hisa grinned suddenly, understanding her feelings perfectly. "Absolutely not. This is a good chance for us to bond over the impending end of our successful high school careers. We mustn't let our youth go to waste!"

Mihoko looked at her companion in surprise, the perfect image of her obsession crumbling in the face of this hot-blooded declaration. Then a smile slowly spread across her face and before she knew it, she had burst into a quiet fit of giggles.

"I'm glad," the redhead said, smiling at her handiwork. The Kazekoshi captain was so serious that she couldn't help but break the tension. "I was worried that maybe I had offended you from earlier."

"Oh, no," the other assured her. "I was just surprised by it. Thank you for your concern, Ueno-san." All traces of her previous nervousness and blushing seemed to have abated, and Hisa wondered if perhaps humor really was the best medicine for a fever.

"It's not a problem," she replied dismissively. "I've just started collecting what I need, and they're mostly in this aisle. Would you mind sticking with me until I'm done here? I was only joking earlier; I wouldn't keep you here against your will."

Mihoko shook her head slightly. "No, it'd be my pleasure."

"It's odd how we never talked much outside of mahjong topics during the training camp, don't you think?" Hisa asked, turning back to face the rows of medical supplies and dumping three or four boxes of various items into the basket, which was quickly becoming full.

"Maybe," Mihoko agreed pleasantly, "but it's also reasonable. It only means we did our jobs properly as the club presidents." She eyed the basket in growing alarm, wondering what in the world would necessitate that many bandages.

"Well, I can't disagree with that." She faced Mihoko once more, about to say something, then paused when she noticed the other girl was staring at the basket on her arm with a faint sense of wonder. "Ah, my… brothers had an accident the other day, so we ran out of bandages. They kept ripping them off, protesting that they didn't need any, so we ended up wasting a lot of what we had in reserve," she lied glibly, trying to account for the absurdly large pile in the basket.

"I see…" Mihoko said slowly. "I've never had any siblings. It sounds difficult for you," she said sympathetically.

Hisa tried not to let the guilt inside show on her face. She really didn't want to lie more than was necessary. "You get used to it. They're older than me, so they're not around too much." She changed the topic. "Have you planned on what to do after graduating?"

"If I lived in an ideal world, I would be attending Keio University in April… but I don't think that's likely to happen. I'll be applying for Keio, Waseda, and Kazekoshi Universities in the winter."

The redhead whistled. "That's impressive. Kazekoshi is your back-up school?"

Mihoko nodded. "It's not much when one compares it to Keio or Waseda, but I'll still be able to attend a good graduate school if I end up in Kazekoshi."

"I see. Ah, I feel really unprepared after hearing that." Hisa laughed. "I toyed with the idea of taking the entrance exam for Chuo University, but that's only because I wanted to be a lawyer when I was younger. I don't actually know what to study in university, or where to study," she admitted, surprised at how comfortable it was for her to say so much to this girl.

"But Ueno-san, at least you'll be able to study what you want, wherever it is you attend," the blonde stated rationally. "I'll be majoring in business and communications to help my father. It's not that I dislike the subject material, but… it's family."

"That's true," she agreed. "What did you originally plan on majoring in?"

Mihoko smiled sheepishly and looked away. "Biology. I… wanted to be a doctor and save people. But I'm not very good at detaching myself and focusing on people mechanically. I'm too emotional."

"'Ah, the wonders of youth'," Hisa quoted Mako quietly. The green-haired girl often spoke like an old man, due to her being raised by her grandfather.

The Kazekoshi captain blinked. "What was that?" She asked curiously.

"Never mind. It's just something my friend likes to say," she explained hastily. "But I think you'd make a great doctor. You seem to have a very good relationship with your underclassmen, and I think it would transfer over well to patients and their families," she observed. "Actually, I happen to know one of the biology professors at Waseda. If you decide to study there, he could give you a few small lessons on the side."

"Really?" She asked excitedly, and then sobered quickly. "But I can't take advantage of that. I have to focus on helping father."

"It sounds like you two have a close relationship," Hisa noted kindly.

Mihoko nodded with a smile. "We do. Oh! I'm sorry, I've only talked about myself. Does Ueno-san plan on playing mahjong at the university level?"

Hisa closed her eyes in thought, wondering how to make Mihoko stop calling her 'Ueno-san' without coming off as too familiar, like earlier. "Maybe," she answered absentmindedly. She decided not to say anything for the moment. If they became better friends, she'd eventually be called 'Hisa-san', anyway, so it would be best not to hurt her feelings. "Looks like we're done. Shall we head to the cashiers?"

When the blonde tried to insist that Hisa go first, she responded, "No, that's okay. You can go ahead of me – you have less things to check out."

The other girl obliged reluctantly. As she tried to swipe her debit card into the machine, it suddenly cracked open and black smoke curled into the ceiling. The people around them panicked and the blonde girl who caused the whole scene started to fall apart slowly. Hisa frowned at the descending chaos, the pieces of her mind tumbling into place as she put together the odd little incidents that occurred around the other girl, or were a direct cause of the other girl.

"Now, now, there's no need to panic," she called out to the employees, who had started to argue amongst themselves if this was a terrorist attack. Really, these people were so tense; she wondered if they even knew how to relax during their time off properly. Then again, most people these days don't really _take_ time off. She made her way in front of Mihoko, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder as she faced the cashier boy. Hisa dug out her wallet from her bag and flipped it open smoothly, carefully placing a few bills on the counter.

Mihoko looked up at this sudden act of generosity, her face damp from her fresh tears. "U-Ueno-san...?" She asked uncertainly.

"There, there. It's fine now." The redhead started back towards her place in line and gave the blonde's shoulder a firm squeeze to reassure her. She turned to grin maliciously at the cashier boy, who gulped nervously. "Right?"

He squeaked out an affirmative and bagged Mihoko's items as fast as he could to avoid provoking Hisa's wrath.

"Th-thank you so much, Ueno-san," the blonde said emotionally. "I don't know how I could ever repay you."

By the time she finished speaking, all of her items had been placed into two small bags. The receipt was being held out to her by the trembling hands of the trembling cashier boy, who trembled even more whenever Hisa's eyes fell upon him. She took it with a gracious, "Thank you."

"Hm…" Hisa watched the cashier boy absentmindedly, who continued his rapid pace of service by checking out her bandages at lightning speed. "Actually, I know of a way. Why don't you come over my house for a few rounds of mahjong? It's been a while since we last played, and I'd like to get a definitive win from you. Call it selfish, but you're too good of a player for me to just forget."

Mihoko blushed for the first time since they first met at the store. She thought she had gotten over her obsession, as she had been conversing with Hisa normally for the better part of an hour, but then the other girl had to say something so embarrassing out of the blue... Well, it was no different from her words from three years ago.

"I-I'd like that," she mumbled in response, blushing even more for her weak answer.

Hisa beamed. "Great! Hold on," she grabbed her own receipt and gave the boy a look, to which he quickly responded understandingly with a pen normally used for signing credit card receipts. Hisa scribbled something on the back of the receipt, towards the bottom, which was usually filled with ad space anyway. She handed it out to Mihoko. "This is my address. I'm guessing that phones and computers don't really work for you, so feel free to come over whenever you're free. I'm usually there."

"Thank you! But w-wait, Ueno-san, what about the money?" She asked in concern, her dutiful personality taking over.

"Don't worry about it," she waved it away carelessly."But if it really bothers you, just bring it over when you visit.

The two gathered their bags and parted ways at the exit. Hisa in particular made a comical sight as she spun her three large bags of medical supplies in the air lazily. Mihoko couldn't help but stare.

The redhead winked at her curious look. "Think of it this way: I won't have to worry about anyone attacking me. I'll be ready to defend myself with just a flick of my wrist." She demonstrated this a moment later, the various small boxes inside the bags crashing against each other as they were all flung in one direction.

Mihoko jumped at the sudden movement. "Ah, that's... Well, thank you again for today, Ueno-san." She changed what she was going to say, opting not to mention what just happened.

"It's fine, really."

"No, I'm really grateful for your help. You really saved me back there. Thank you."

Hisa grinned lopsidedly. "Okay, if this keeps up, neither of us will get home before the sun sets. Why don't we call it a truce for now? After all, I couldn't just leave a friend in trouble like that, now could I?"

The blonde blushed again at the word _friend_. "I-I suppose n-not... Good day, then, Ueno-san."

"See ya." Hisa waved over her shoulder, turning away to walk in the direction of her home.

Mihoko found herself staring at her retreating back, not unlike the time during the tournament, when Hisa had walked off from another victorious match. She wasn't sure that Hisa was walking away empty-handed this time, either, not counting the bags she so obviously carried. The Kazekoshi captain could feel that her breath had been stolen once again.


	6. Chapter 6

Thanks to x3Valentine for catching an error in Chapter 5. It's very much appreciated. My English will at times be lacking, so please feel free to correct me (this is directed to everyone).

Also, I forgot that Hisa refers to the student council as the student _congress_. It's been fixed accordingly.

Notes:

_Tonkatsu_ – Deep fried pork cutlet.

I'm sure most of you know this by now, but in Japan, calling someone by their first name denotes intimacy with the person. It's not necessarily romantic, but it can be considered _really_ rude if you call someone by their given name and you haven't yet earned that right. It's also often a plot point when two people begin calling each other by their given names (like in the last episode of Saki between Nodoka and Saki).

* * *

Hisa just returned to her room from her nightly bath when her mobile vibrated, signaling a text message had arrived. She turned the television on as she made her way to her desk, where the mobile rested. The text on the front LCD read _Yasuko_. She flipped it open.

_For a girl who asked me to give up my weekend for her, you're pretty ungrateful._

She smirked and typed out a response on the keypad.** I have no idea what you're talking about.**

The mobile buzzed again almost instantaneously, and she wouldn't have been surprised if the other woman had furiously typed out an angry retort. When she flipped it open again, she wasn't far wrong.

_You brat! It's been over a week and I still haven't gotten any thanks. You could have at least treated me to a few bowls of katsudon._

She giggled, knowing Fujita's anger was mostly only for show. **Now, now. Be reasonable. If I did that, I would have gone broke in one sitting.**

_And?_

Hisa sighed in exasperation and typed out the proper response. **Yes, oh mighty one. This unworthy servant of yours humbly requests for your forgiveness, and is eternally grateful for your generous support in previous times.**

_That's better. With that said, you have my respect for helping those underclassmen of yours improve so quickly. It gave me chills to be beaten by the same girl who beat Koromo. It's hard to believe she's that same girl from earlier this year._

**Thanks, but I didn't do much. It was mostly through their own efforts that they got this far.** She turned her attention to the television screen and found it ironic that Fujita's latest recorded match was being shown.

_Modesty doesn't become you. It makes you sound like a politician._

She smirked as she read that. **But I am one, did you forget? I'd like to think I'm more reliable than that, though.** **By the way, good job in your last match. It's being broadcasted right now. I would have kept that 2-pin in the last East round, though.**

_Unlike you, I'd rather just take advantage of my opponents' weaknesses. I don't need them to react to everything I do. Those with a false sense of security are always the easiest targets._

The redhead knew she was referencing Hisa's habit of forcing the flow of the game towards her will. The other players would often react in fear to her riichis and discard what they thought to be safe tiles, and were easily ron'd. Then once they realized she liked to use hell waits, she'd use that against them and go for normal waits. Fujita, however, liked to blend in with the flow until the last round, during which she often won on direct hits on the player with the most points. She typed her response. **I'll agree with you on that last part, but that's about all I can agree with. Well, to each their own. Anyway, how does it feel to be on your own now? Little Yasuko's all grown up… it makes me sad when I remember how she used to knock on my door at night, afraid of the dark…**

_What's with that condescending tone, you brat? I don't recall ever doing that. Just because I happened to be taken in by your family for a few years doesn't mean you're the one who raised me. If anything, __**I**__ was the one who took care of __**you**__._

Hisa grinned. **Details, details… By the way, I ran into Kazekoshi's captain today.**

_And? Did you convert her to your harem?_

She frowned at the mobile's screen in puzzlement. **What harem? Have you been watching anime again? Anyway, it looks like she's a walking technobane. Poor girl.**

_What's this? Is Hisa Takei actually worried about someone other than herself?_

**How rude. And who was it that watched over you all night whenever you were sick? And let's not forget how much effort I put into the mahjong club…**

_It just occurred to me that this conversation would have gone much faster if I had just called._

**It must be nice to be so carefree.** She decided to let her go for avoiding the topic.

"Ojou-sama?" Haru's voice called from the slight opening of her doorway and Hisa looked up. "There's a call for you."

She blinked in surprise. Why didn't they just use her mobile number? Or maybe it had to do with the student congress?

"All right, I'll be right there. Thanks."

Hisa quickly typed that she'd be away to answer a call and dropped her phone on her bed, leaving the television on thoughtlessly.

* * *

"Mother, I'm home!" Mihoko called out to the empty hallway. She balanced carefully on one leg, then the other, as she took off her shoes at the entrance and put on the house slippers. The grocery bag on her arm helped to provide counterbalance for this act.

Masuyo Fukuji responded cheerily from inside the kitchen, "Welcome back! Lunch should be done by the time you put away the food and wash up."

"Yes, mother," she responded, heading to the kitchen. "I'll do that right away."

"So, did you find everything we needed for tonight's dinner?"

"Yes," Mihoko answered, blushing as she recalled what happened. She was glad that the refrigerator placed her facing away from her mother. "It's lucky that I decided to go early today. There was only one leek left in the store."

"That probably means that the other kids in the neighborhood have come home from school as well. Those parents waste no time in sending their children on errands the moment they're home." Her mother shook her head in consternation, her natural brown hair and blue eyes revealing that was not of pure Japanese descent.

Mihoko smiled at that. "But mother, I just came back from an errand. We're not much different."

"For such a bright girl, you seem to conveniently forget things," the woman commented wryly. "No, my dear, you wouldn't let me do the shopping even if I had begged you. You should let me spoil you once in a while."

"I should help out around the house as much as possible while I still can. I wouldn't forgive myself if I took advantage of mother's kindness and never repaid her." The girl closed the refrigerator after putting the last of the onions away. She went to the kitchen sink to wash her hands and saw that her mother had finished frying the pork and was placing two pieces of it on separate plates.

"I'm grateful for your help, but you're so responsible that it gives me a headache. Enjoy yourself a little. Aren't you going to spend time with your friends from Kazekoshi this summer?"

Her mother gestures impatiently for her to sit down, which she hurriedly does. A plate of _tonkatsu_ is placed in front of her with rice and a bowl of miso soup. The woman sat across from her with an identical setup.

"_Itadakimasu,"_ they both chimed.

"Naoko-san expressed an interest in coming over, but I thought I'd leave the mahjong club to their own devices. It wouldn't be fair for me to impose on their summer break," Mihoko explained, practically repeating what she said to her roommate. It would probably be another lonely summer for her, but at least Naoko would be visiting. On the other hand, she'll have plenty of time to study. Mihoko tried not to think about Hisa's invitation to her house. Blushing out of nowhere would only put her in an unnecessary situation. It's not that she didn't trust her mother, but talking about that would be… awkward.

"Is that poor girl staying at the dormitories again?" Masuyo asked with a frown. "That won't do. I should call her parents and convince them to allow her to stay here. It's entirely unhealthy to spend an entire summer alone. It'll be good for the both of you, I think."

Mihoko smiled ruefully at this. "Ah, mother, please at least finish your meal. You know you'll forget about it once you leave it." Her rational plea stopped her mother, who was halfway to her feet already, heading in the direction of the house phone.

"You're right. Thank you, Mihoko-chan." She sat down again and they resumed their meal in silence.

"Will father be home tonight?" the blonde asked.

Her mother shook her head. "No, he'll be away until the weekend. I'm sure he'll spend the entire time with you. I'm almost jealous," she added teasingly.

"But father loves you very much, mother!" Mihoko protested adamantly.

Masuyo looks into her food wistfully. "Mm, I'm sure he does… Ah, that's right. Your aunt wants to see you again at her mahjong parlor. She says that a lot of the younger players want to play against you again. I daresay you've built up quite a fan club there."

"I'm sure that's not true…" she said in embarrassment. "But I'll be happy to visit. I'm sure everyone's gotten much better since I've been away."

"Don't tell me you've been skipping out on practice again just for your underclassmen?" Her mother asked in chastisement.

"That's… well… but they need the practice!" She said defensively, forgetting her manners for a split second. "It's my last year, so it really wouldn't be fair for me to take their place. I should watch over them like a proper club leader."

Masuyo sighed and shook her head. "Mihoko-chan, I'm really worried about you. I'm very proud of the daughter you've become, and especially the young woman you've turned into, but it's just not practical for you to think of others all the time. I know I'm about to give you unconventional advice, but we're in a privileged position here because of you. So, please, do not hesitate to be selfish. Take advantage of your position, of our family name, of our wealth, and most importantly, your future. You cannot keep yourself on the sidelines all the time. If it's you, I know you will not waste it all for nothing."

Mihoko wanted to protest once more, but kept her feelings inside. Her mother was saying this out of love and worry for her, and it would be disrespectful and ungrateful for her to say otherwise. She didn't understand why she was being encouraged to be selfish rather than continue being kind. No, that was a lie. Her selfishness _was_ her kindness. Was that not enough? Must she become a cruelly ambitious person in order to make those around her happy? She couldn't do that. That wouldn't bring happiness to anyone at all.

"Yes, mother," she said neutrally, masking her conflicted emotions with an expression of understanding.

* * *

"Mother, do you know where the new phonebook is?" Mihoko asked, coming down the stairs and into the living room. Her mother was watching a movie while folding the clothes that the girl just finished washing. The sounds of a classic war movie rang out across the room. "I've looked all around the house, and I can't find it at all."

"Planning to make a call? It should be at the entrance. I'm sorry, I forgot to bring it in with me when they handed it out," she explained apologetically.

"That's all right! Thank you, mother!" Mihoko rushed back into the hallway and headed towards the entrance.

Masuyo lowered her brows in puzzlement. Her daughter hadn't been this excited since she applied and got accepted into Kazekoshi, which was years ago. She peeked into the hallway and called out, "Who are you planning on calling?"

"Ah!"

The brunette winced as she saw her daughter slip and take a fall on her behind. Nothing else made contact, and she reasoned a little bump on her daughter's bottom wouldn't be fatal. There was no need to coddle her at this age for something so small.

The girl stood up with an embarrassed smile, her hand clutching the considerably-sized phonebook. Her face was faintly blushing, and her mother assumed it was from falling in plain sight.

"Someone helped me today at the store, and I wanted to thank them. They gave me their address, but not their phone number," she explained, slightly out of breath.

"Ah, so they've figured out your handicap," she noted with interest. "Was it a boy?"

"N-no!" Mihoko blushed even more.

She smiled at her daughter's shyness. "Well, don't let me keep you. It's good to be polite, after all."

The girl didn't respond and instead headed towards the antique phone that they had purchased a few years ago just for her use. Her technological ineptitude seemed to only affect technology that had been created in the past few decades, and of those it only affected the gadgets that required input from the user. Needless to say, this included computers, mobile phones, music players, and security systems. Thankfully, things like the television were exempted, as long as she was kept a healthy distance away from the controls.

On the other hand, it did teach the girl how to become extremely efficient in searching for data in printed media, and it was within minutes that she located Hisa's phone number.

"_Hello, this is the Takei residence. To whom do you wish to speak with?"_ The old phone made it difficult for Mihoko to tell much from the voice of the speaker beyond the fact that it was young and female.

"Is this H-H-H-Hisa T-Takei?" She stumbled over Hisa's name, blushing wildly at saying her given name so suddenly. Her present last name was also unfamiliar, but it had none of the intimate connotations of a given name.

"_No, this is her maid. Please hold while I notify her of your call."_

A maid?

"Yes, please do," she responded quickly.

A short while later she heard the swift sound of footsteps that grew in volume, which signaled someone's imminent presence. Mihoko was surprised that the maid had left so silently, while this other person was almost the exact opposite.

"_Hello, this is Hisa. What's up?"_ The voice on the other line asked casually.

"U-Ueno-san! Uhm, this is Mihoko Fukuji. We ran into each other at the store today," she explained in a rush. Her earlier confidence of speaking with Hisa had shattered the moment the Kiyosumi president had saved her. It was like being caught in a tidal wave of emotions. The very least she could do was express her thanks properly in a coherent manner. Although, at the rate things were going, that might not be possible. And here she thought using a phone instead of meeting her face to face would have been easier.

"_Oh, hey! I didn't know you could use a phone. Is it all right? There's no time limit or anything?"_

"N-no, this is an antique model," she explained, calming down. "I'm fine as long as I'm working with something old."

"_I see, I see. How lucky for me. I was wondering what I'd do if you never came over. But I guess this means you don't get much privacy during your calls, does it?"_

"Privacy?" Mihoko repeated in confusion. "Why would I need to worry about that?"

"_Well, you know. If you were talking about this and that, it would be difficult to do it in front of your family, right?"_

"B-b… Ueno-san! What are you saying?!" She blushed heavily. Was she actually having this conversation with Hisa?

She heard a laugh on the other end. _"I'm sorry, I was only teasing you. I couldn't help it. You sounded so nervous, so I thought I'd break the ice a little."_

"That was cruel, Ueno-san," she responded in a moment of self-pity.

"_I'm really sorry. I promise I'll make it up to you when you come over, okay? When can you, by the way?"_

Hisa sounded so insistent about it that Mihoko felt an overwhelming surge of hope rise up in her. She pushed it down determinedly to focus on the conversation better. She might just bury herself if she embarrassed herself again in front of the other girl.

"Is tomorrow all right with you? Or is it too soon?" She asked hesitantly.

"_That's fine. I'll be waiting for you. I'll see you then."_

"All right." Then Mihoko suddenly remembered something. "Ah, wait! Ueno-san! That's not why I called!"

"_Hm? What's wrong?"_

"The… The truth is, Ueno-san, I… I wanted to thank you for today. I know I was a mess earlier and I don't think I was properly grateful for all that you did for me. I also need to pay you back the money you lent me."

"_Oh, you were fine. I remembered hearing the words 'thank you' at least half a dozen times. You're very polite."_ A laugh. _"If became half as polite as you, I think my family might die of shock. But don't worry about it. Just make sure to come tomorrow, okay?"_

"Okay," she responded dreamily, then shook her head to focus. "But I absolutely must pay you pack! It would be rude if I didn't," Mihoko insisted.

"_Ah…"_ The voice on the other end seemed a little at a loss for words. _"All right, here's an idea. If you beat me twice in a row tomorrow, I'll accept your money. If you lose at all, you will keep your money. Does that sound fair?"_

Mihoko smiled a little ironically at how things were unfolding. Everything seemed to come back to mahjong when it came to Hisa. "It does. I will look forward to it."

"_Same. Oh, before I forget, here's my mobile number. It's easier for me to answer that than the house phone."_

She wrote it down on a slip of paper that was on the telephone table and inserted it into her pocket carefully. "Thank you, Ueno-san."

"_No, no, thank __**you**__. It'll be a fun duel tomorrow. I'll see you then."_

"Good bye."

"It sounds more like a friend than just a 'someone'," her mother called out from the living room.

"I think so, too, mother." Mihoko smiled happily and went to her room, thumbing the paper in her pocket fondly.

Maybe Hisa was right. There really was no privacy with a house phone.


	7. Chapter 7

Ugh. It took too long to write this. Also, what do you guys think of me doing a Touka fic after this is finished?

And really, your reviews and reader count make my day. Thank you.

Also, I am awful at writing mahjong scenes, and I can't count hands, either. I've been relying on tenhou to count for me during my matches, so I've been spoiled. Please bear this in mind when we get to that part. Any helpful criticism would be appreciated.

Terminology:

_Ojamashimasu_ – Basically means, "Excuse me for intruding." Used when entering someone's home.

_Shishi-odoshi_– AKA "The thing that goes doink." It's often seen in rich Japanese homes. It's usually made of bamboo and when it fills up with water, it will upend itself. On the way up, it will hit a stone that gives off that unique sound.___

* * *

_

The next day came quickly for Mihoko, for she had slept early as usual but somehow managed to wake up late. Her mother laughed off her apologies and excused it as an inevitability of summer. Lunch had been a simple affair of homemade ramen for the two women, as the man of the house was still away at work. It was fairly common for the working man to stay away at the office and come home on the weekends. There was no telling when one would be sent off overseas to negotiate business contracts, so it was better this way.

As the two worked on washing the bowls in tandem, Masuyo turned to her daughter to make a quick announcement.

"I called the Tohnos today about Naoko-chan. It took a bit of effort, but they've granted their permission for Naoko-chan stay here. Isn't that great? You'll finally have the high school sleepover you've always wanted!" She paused in her excitement as she noticed a small detail. "Although, I suppose this is more of an extended stay than a sleepover…"

Mihoko smiled in amusement at her mother's energy. "That's great, mother. I hope Naoko-san won't find it too inconvenient."

"Well, we may not have as many books as she's accustomed to, but it's better than the two of you shutting yourselves up in your rooms the whole month. That is, unless you're planning on making that mahjong match tonight a regular activity. Speaking of which, you should bring those two girls over to your aunt's parlor. Naoko-chan will be arriving on Sunday, so she'll make it in time for the weekly mahjong tournament. I'm sure they'd enjoy themselves, as would you."

"I don't know if they'll want to, but I'll be sure to bring it up." She added, "Naoko-san seems to find mahjong unappealing."

Her mother shrugged as she dried the dishware and put them away. "That's what happens when your father's an internationally-ranked player. Really, it feels like every time I turn around, another pro player pops up. It's like they're mass-producing them in this city, I swear."

The blonde giggled at that. "Perhaps, but isn't it exciting? I'm sure mother would like to play against them all."

"Maybe, but my war tactics aren't always compatible with every playing style out there," she said, referencing her love of old war films. "I can recall a few times when your aunt brought over a pro player and didn't tell me who they were. They'd completely outmaneuver me, and that's not counting those devious tricks that your aunt loves to pull."

Mihoko smiled ruefully, reminded of how she fared similarly in her first match against Hisa. "But mother is still very strong, even so."

Masuyo raised a skeptic eyebrow at her. "I suspect that's no longer the case anymore, Ms. First Place."

Her daughter blushed. "That has nothing to do with that. I've never won from a _ron_ from you, mother."

"Well, it's a game where you can only improve over time, and you surely have more opportunities to play than I do. Now off with you. I'm sure you've only been humoring this old lady as long as you have because you're so polite. I know you'd rather be on your way to Ueno-san's, right?" She prodded the girl away from the kitchen.

"That's not true!" Mihoko protested honestly. "I-"

"Yes, yes," her mother cut her off impatiently and closed her off from the kitchen.

Mihoko stared at the door in surprise for a moment before cracking out a smile. Her mother may be abrupt, but she read into one's feelings honestly and always supported them to the best of her abilities.

* * *

A short while later Mihoko arrived at the front gates of the Takei's small mansion. She looked upon the imposing width of the property, noting how it extended into half the block. She didn't remember seeing the names Takei or Ueno in her father's company records. Were they uninvolved in business, then? If so, just what did her family do in order to maintain such wealth? Her own apartment, spacious though it was, felt extremely small in comparison.

She hesitantly rang the doorbell, wondering if the maid would let her in. She felt out of place here, and she didn't even know His all that well. Feelings, no matter how strong, don't hold up well under the scrutiny of a gatekeeper, especially one that sounded as curt and mechanical as the maid she heard yesterday. Her thoughts were starting to get away with her.

The gate opened slowly and Mihoko was both relieved and surprised to see that it was Hisa who came to get her. She was dressed in a plain _yukata_, which blended in perfectly with the traditional atmosphere the mansion gave off.

"Hey!" The redhead greeted cheerily. "You're earlier than I expected, but that's fine. Come in, I'll give you a tour of my humble abode," she said grandly with a flourish of her arm.

"Ah, are you sure that won't be a bother?" Mihoko asked hesitantly. She tried not to stare at the inside of the gate, where there were countless flowers in colorful bloom. She itched to go over and examine them all, wondering just how many of them were even native to Japan.

"You're my guest. I'd be a poor host if I left you to wander alone in this place. Trust me, you don't want to open the wrong door here," she finished off warningly.

The blonde wasn't sure if she was entirely serious, if the mischievous grin was to be believed. She agreed and was let in, muttering a quiet _ojamashimasu_.

Hisa folded her arms inside her sleeves as she explained that the flowers were planted here under her mother's supervision. "Seeing you so surprised reminds me of when I just came home and saw them for the first time myself." She grinned.

"This was done in a day?" Mihoko asked in surprise.

"No, no. I meant when I came back from my apartment in the city. It's closer to the school, so I commute from there. I come back here during breaks," she elaborated.

"I see." The blonde nodded in understanding. "Kazekoshi is a boarding school, so I can relate a little."

"Ah, a boarding school sounds like fun. I'm happy with Kiyosumi, though." Hisa continued where she left off. "But yes, it used to be a stone garden. I can't imagine how long it took to plant all of this, and I don't even want to try to think about how much effort it takes to keep them all so healthy." She paused after a thought, then continued, "Or, at least, I think they're all healthy. I don't know much about flowers, sorry."

"That's all right. There are a few species that do well with only minimal care, or so I've read. That may explain away the plausibility of having so many flowers." Mihoko smiled, her nervousness fading away in light of Hisa's easygoing dialogue.

"Hm, really? I see," Hisa noted in surprise and a little respect. "You're well-read. I like that," she decided. "There's only so much I can say about mahjong before it starts to sound like I'm giving a lecture, and I'd rather have other things to talk about."

The redhead made a face at that and Mihoko giggled quietly. "I'm sure if it's Ueno-san, it would be a very interesting lecture."

"Why, thank you." She added playfully, "And yes, in case you were wondering, flattery does, indeed, work on me."

The other girl blushed. "Ah… no… I wasn't trying to-"

"I was teasing you," she explained in amusement. "I'm sorry; it's starting to become a bad habit. You should probably yell at me, but there's no guarantee I won't like that, either."

"Ueno-san!" Her face was definitely on fire now; she could feel it. Was Hisa always this unbearable? But no matter how embarrassed she felt, a part of her was pleased at the unwavering attention. Those confident eyes that were looking only at her, the ever-present grin that appeared whenever the redhead was talking to her, the words that said, _Yes, I'm listening to you _in between the lines… She didn't think it would happen beyond the dreams and wishful thinking of her past. This Hisa was real, and she was so different and yet so familiar to what she had imagined her to be.

"Rubies and sapphires shouldn't look at me with such a scary expression," she chastised lightly. "It doesn't do their beauty justice."

Mihoko instantly shut her right eye in a panic and turned away. Old habits died hard and she hated how weak it made her look in front of Hisa. She calmed herself down and told herself Hisa was different. The other girl had no ill intent, and was merely saying that to tease her again. It was harmless fun. It didn't mean anything. She slowly turned back towards her and was surprised to see that Hisa was still smiling as if nothing had happened. She had expected the redhead to look at her with pity, or worse, maybe even disgust, irrational though it was for her to think that.

"Ah, now you've closed it," Hisa said in slight disappointment. "That's a shame. They really do look quite pretty together, you know. Well, I suppose it's better this way. My… brothers would be too distracted to pay attention to their tiles if you had both of them open."

The blonde's kind nature kicked in at that point and she started to defend the aforementioned males. "I'm sure they're not that easily distracted. They must be rather good if they live in the same household as Ueno-san."

Hisa smirked at that. "If only that were true. Anyway, please feel free to use these slippers while you're here." She gestured towards the guest slippers prepared near the entryway of the actual mansion itself. The two changed footwear.

"Thank you." Mihoko marveled at how far down the hallways seemed to extend. There were two hallways. One led straight ahead, with the sliding doors on the left leading to the outdoors, where she assumed there would be another garden, and the doors on the right leading to other rooms inside. The other hallway cut a straight path to her right, with the sliding doors being on the left and a wall on the right. She could see a window that filtered in the bright sunlight of the afternoon at the end of it.

"I'm surprised you look so impressed at this place. I thought the Fukujis lived in an even bigger house." Hisa's sudden voice cut her back to reality, and she realized she had been staring rudely inside the house.

"I-I'm sorry, that was ru…" her voice trailed off as she realized the second part of what the other girl said. "You know of us?"

"Only a little." Hisa smiled apologetically. "I'm sorry; I tried to look up where you lived after I bumped into you yesterday. I was curious. I didn't think anyone I knew lived around here. When I found your name in one of the search results, imagine my surprise when I saw it was linked to Satoru Fukuji, the founder and current head of Fukuji Corporations. I assumed your house was even bigger than mine."

Mihoko was shocked. She didn't think her name had ever been mentioned in the same sentence as her father in any public records. Her father had made sure his private life had been kept a secret to protect his family from harm. A seed of doubt started to plant itself inside of her, but she brushed it away forcefully. No matter how she came across that information, Hisa wasn't the type of person to use it against her. She even apologized for it! There was no need to lose faith in her just because of this.

She schooled her expression and smiled at the other girl. "No, not at all. We live in a simple apartment. It's slightly bigger than average, but it's really nothing special."

"Oh, I see. I'm sorry for jumping to conclusions." She continued in a more lighthearted tone, "On the other hand, it does explain why the mahjong tables don't seem to react to you. Didn't your father take part in its development?"

"He did." Mihoko's smile grew wider at the memory of her father's birthday gift to her a few years ago. "Although it wasn't just for my sake; many people around the world are now able to play mahjong safely due to its introduction to the market."

"That sounds like a doting parent. Fukuji-san might be more spoiled than I thought," she added teasingly.

Mihoko didn't know what to say to that and merely stayed quiet, blushing slightly as she was led through one of the hallways.

Hisa gestured to her left. "That door we just passed is where we'll be playing mahjong. Those two guys are probably still eating, so we'll just walk around until they finish." She winked suddenly. "Or we could take our time and leave them waiting in there as punishment."

The Kazekoshi captain giggled. "That sounds like a plan."

"Glad you agree." She grinned. "And this is the bathroom. It's conveniently close to the mahjong room, in case one of us manages to win with such a spectacular hand that the others become sick with shock." She winked again. "Of course, that's only a regular occurrence when I play."

Mihoko could only shake her head in amusement at the other girl's exaggerated ego.

"…and this is our other garden," Hisa said while opening one of the outer sliding doors, revealing a highly polished wooden floor on the other side of the door. It lead to a green garden which contained a pond and a _shishi-odoshi____. _"Occasionally father likes to drink his tea here during the mornings and read the paper. It scares me how he's starting to behave like an old man – he's only in his thirties! Men, honestly," she shook her head emphatically, which made the other girl giggle again.

"Ojou-sama." A young woman in a dark yukata appeared from around the corner.

Hisa turned towards the voice. "Yes?"

"The two have finished and are waiting presently in the agreed room."

"I see. Thank you, Haru-san." The redhead smiled gratefully and watched the other woman leave before facing Mihoko. "Despite what I said earlier, I think it would be more fair to you if we played now. I won't delude myself into thinking you came for my earth-shatteringly fascinating tour. Shall we?"

Mihoko nodded in agreement. "Let's."

* * *

"They're still like teenage boys, really, so please don't expect much." Hisa slid open the door to the mahjong room.

"Hey, at least our bodies look fully grown, unlike yours," one of them snapped back, annoyed.

"What was that?" Hisa took a step towards him and dropped down at one side of the table, across from him. "And who was it last night whose eating habits left rice grains scattered all over the floor?"

"That's different! I was injured!" He protested.

"Yeah, mentally."

"Why you-!"

The bigger of the two men cleared his throat and everyone looked at him. "May we begin?"

Mihoko entered last and shut the door behind her. She took a good look at the two men, trying to find any resemblance they shared with Hisa. They both looked very rough, as if they had just finished a fight but without any injuries. The taller of the two had his hair cut very short, but left a long tail at the end. The other had a shaggy bowl cut, which was dyed blonde. Both of them wore suits, which were worn very casually, as if they had slept in it. All in all, they looked more like yakuza than anyone's family members, but who was she to judge?

"I'm Mihoko Fukuji. Pleased to meet you all." She bowed from her seated position at the table.

"I'm Kazuki," the other blonde said.

"Touma," the big man introduced himself shortly.

"All right. Let's start." Hisa rolled up her sleeves and rolled the dice to decide their seating positions and who would be dealer for the first round.

Hisa ended up being dealer for the first round, which meant that if she won, her hand would be worth more than a normal player's. Most of the discarded tiles had been predominantly of the two out of three suits. Hisa had already called an open (4th tile called from someone else) _kan_, the four tiles resting ominously on her right. That meant her hand was open and they were in danger of dealing into her hand, if she was in _tenpai_ (one tile away from winning). That was the problem with open hands: while they were worth less than closed hands (which one could call for _riichi_ if they were in _tenpai_), it was hard to tell when that hand was in _tenpai_ or not because of the lack of _riichi_. Then again, there were players who did not call _riichi_ precisely because they knew the other players would be extra careful with their discards after calling it.

Then Hisa called a _pon_ (3rd tile called from someone else) on one of Kazuki's discards. Mihoko quickly scanned the pond (discarded tiles) once more, still with one eye closed. Hisa's discards largely consisted of one suit and the bonus tiles. It was implied she was waiting on one of the other two suits, and perhaps one of the bonus tiles, which hadn't been discarded yet. Then again, it was possible it was only a trap and she was actually waiting for a tile that she hadn't discarded yet, but the others had. She was known for her hell waits, after all.

Kazuki dealt the bonus tile that hadn't been thrown away yet. Everyone stared at it, then breathed a sigh of relief that the round hadn't ended yet, and it was deemed a safe tile. Mihoko's turn was next and she drew the second east wind. She discarded it.

"Ron! Ii Pei Kou, Yaku Hai, Ippatsu. 11,600"

Everyone stared at her. She skipped calling ron on Kazuki, and went directly for her? Mihoko exhaled slowly, keenly feeling the sting of a dealer's win.

"It's a duel, remember?" Hisa grinned at her.

"Oy! We're still here, you know," Kazuki growled.

"It's fine." Touma gave him a level look. "We're not on the same level as these two, anyway. It's better if we don't get caught in the crossfire."

"I'll win the next round." Mihoko smiled determinedly at the other girl, who raised an eyebrow.

The blonde girl's dealing hand was ideal for a decent winning hand, with a pair of bonus tiles waiting to become a triple that would add more more points. She glanced up at Hisa to check her reaction to her own dealt tiles. The other girl still had that ever-present grin. It was difficult to read into what it meant, if it meant anything at all. If things went well, all she had to do was wait for her final set to come together, then lure out a _ron_ from Hisa if she was lucky. A _tsumo _(self-drawn win) would have been fine, as well, but a direct hit on the other girl would be ideal.

The discarded tiles in the beginning were the usual for a mahjong match. Nothing strange or unusual there. Well, that was fine. Her pair of bonus tiles would stay a pair. There was no need to endanger her entire hand out of greed.

A few turns later, her hand came together. Excellent, she was in _tenpai_. She decided not to call for _riichi_ to make it easier for her to _ron_ on someone. Kazuki was still discarding tiles carelessly, focusing entirely on getting his own hand together. Touma was more cautious, preferring to throw away safe tiles. It was possible that he wasn't trying to win this round at all. Hisa was still as unreadable as ever.

Her next draw was the third bonus tile. What kind of luck was this? It was possible for her to go for a _yakuman_ now, a monster hand. Or she could even declare her win right now... but that would be the same as Hisa's win earlier, except she didn't declare riichi and neither was she dealer, so her earnings would be less. She decided to go for the monster hand and picked apart one of her sets.

Touma discarded the fourth bonus tile.

"Kan!" She slid her four bonus tiles to the right, one tilted to the right to show that Touma was the one who gave her the _kan_.

Touma shakily discarded his next tile, which happened to be the fourth tile of one of her triples.

"Kan!"

Everyone stared at her second _kan_ and Hisa's grin only grew wider.

The discards now consisted mostly of safe tiles, although it seemed Kazuki was likely to throw out the next tile for her_ kans_, with the way he was erratically discarding random tiles.

He threw out another of the tiles she was waiting on.

"Pon!"

She slid the three tiles to her right and discarded another useless tile.

It looks like her hand would be worth more than she originally planned. It was like watching Saki during the finals all over again. Poor Kana.

Two turns passed by uneventfully, although Hisa called out a _pon_ on a set of bonus tiles. It felt like a bluff, and Mihoko ignored it, although the other two players started to sweat. She drew another of her needed tiles and declared _kan_ again, drawing a useless tile afterwards. She discarded it. She _tsumo'd_ on her next turn.

"Tsumo! Suu Kan Tsu, Toi Toi, San Kan Tsu, San Ren Kou, Yaku Hai. 48,000."

Hisa whistled. "That was straight out of the finals. Good job pulling that off. I have to admit, I wanted to see it happen in front of me."

Mihoko merely smiled and collected her points.

The next round had Kazuki declare an early win by_ ron_ on a simple hand. Touma was the one who dealt into it. The two girls shared a rueful look at having their thunder stolen from them.

The last round had Mihoko waiting on a tile that had yet to show up. She decided to use Hisa's habit of hell waits against her and had declared _riichi_ a turn after Hisa had declared _riichi_. She had made sure that she wasn't likely to discard a tile that Hisa needed, after a thorough examination of the pond, and where Hisa had decided to throw her tiles from. It was easier to guess what tiles a player had when they kept their hand in order.

Kazuki threw out a tile that would add more points to Mihoko's hand.

"Kan!" Mihoko called out.

"Not this time," Hisa interrupted her. "Ron. Chin Itsu, Pin Fu. 12,000."

The game ended with Mihoko still in first place, due to her monster hand earlier, Hisa in second, Touma in third, and Kazuki in fourth. They would have played again if the brothers hadn't been called away for work.

"I'm very sorry about this, ojou-chan," Touma said to Mihoko. "If you come over again, please be sure to call us. Despite the beating we took, we really enjoyed playing with you, and would like to do so again."

"Hey, hey!" Kazuki called over his shoulder from the hallway. "Stop flirting with the girl and let's get going!"

"It's called manners, dumbass – something that you need to learn," he retorted.

"Whatever, you're still wasting time. I'm leavin' without ya! See ya, Hisa-chan, Mihoko-chan." Kazuki waved once and walked off, leaving Touma to catch up with him, arguing about the importance of being polite.

"That was a good game. I'm glad I was able to meet them," Mihoko said afterwards.

Hisa nodded. "It was. I still can't get over that crazy win of yours. That's something one of my teammates would do, and I didn't expect it from you. Don't tell me that training camp let you absorb some of her powers?"

"Ah, I think that was just luck," she said modestly. "You know how I usually play."

"Hm, I don't know about that…" Hisa said uncertainly. "Those two are right, though. It would be nice if you came over regularly for mahjong. I've been playing with the same types of people for years here, so it's refreshing to be able to play with you outside of a tournament context."

"I would love to!" Mihoko exclaimed eagerly, forgetting herself. She blushed almost immediately afterwards. "I mean, if it's no trouble. I wouldn't want to disturb your entrance exam preparations."

The redhead waved a careless hand. "Don't worry about that. It's not like I've been slacking on that end, and I doubt you have, either. Anyway, shall I continue the tour, or do you have to get going?"

"I can stay for a while longer," Mihoko replied quietly, trying not to get her hopes up to high. Hisa was taking a surprising amount of interest in her, and she wasn't sure how much to expect. Friendship sounded like a good place to start.

Hisa smiled. "Good."


	8. Chapter 8

Special thinks to Cytrus. I've fixed two of the three details you've mentioned. The last will be edited later, when the thought of writing mahjong doesn't fill me with dread.

I wanted to post this sooner, but various circumstances have conspired against me to prevent that from happening.

And yes, you've caught me - I have no great love for Henry David Thoreau (philosopher of the 1840s, mostly known for his works _Walden_ and _Civil Disobedience_, the former of which makes me rage in incredulity).

Someone please tell me if these two were behaving too OOC in this chapter. I'm a little less confident than usual about that.

* * *

Hisa tucked her arms inside of her sleeves as she continued to lead Mihoko around the small mansion. Truth be told, she hadn't expected to meet her after the training camp, even though she really enjoyed playing with the Kazekoshi captain. Coming across her at the store and then inviting her over had been pure luck and impulse. Come to think of it, she did tend to win her matches using those two principles. Maybe this was the beginning of something interesting. It certainly had been a while since she had a friend she could call a rival.

"By the way…" The blonde girl started to ask hesitantly.

"Hm?" Hisa turned from the living room to face her.

"May I ask why you are wearing a _yukata_?" She asked curiously.

"Oh, this?" She gestured vaguely at it. "Don't tell anyone, but I was feeling lazy when I woke up this morning, so I decided to wear this." Noting the other girl's still puzzled look, she explained further. "It used to belong to my father, which is why it's so plain. I stole it from him when I was younger and had Haru-san adjust it when I grew enough to wear it." She paused thoughtfully. "To be honest, I still don't think he's noticed it's been gone all these years."

Hisa was gratified to see Mihoko giggle in response to that. The other girl always seemed so earnestly serious that she felt almost compelled to make her smile as often as possible. She couldn't explain it; it was like a challenge that she couldn't resist.

The redhead continued up the stairs. "This floor mostly holds our bedrooms. I'd show them to you, but..." She looked away guiltily and continued in a quieter voice, as if the person mentioned could be summoned by name, "Haru-san would definitely catch me."

"Is… Is Haru-san really that scary?" Mihoko asked in concern.

"Well, that's one way to put it." Hisa neglected to mention the older woman's habit of implying that one of her employees had unnecessary intentions whenever they did something - such as trying to do this and that with a guest in her parents' bedroom. She changed the subject hastily. "In any case, I'll show you my room, and we can relax there until you have to leave. I have some books that I think you might like."

The blonde girl reddened and stammered out, "U-Ueno-san's r-room…?"

Hisa blinked at this nervous reaction. "Or we could just go back to the library?" She referenced one of the rooms they visited earlier, which was crammed from floor to ceiling with various books. She continued worriedly, "I'm sorry, was I being rude again? I just assumed friends usually talked with each other in their rooms, but I haven't had many people our age over our house, so I could be wrong…"

"N-no! That's not it!" Mihoko waved her hands out in front of her in protest. "I w-was just surprised." She took a deep breath. "I don't mind at all," she smiled nervously.

"That's good." Hisa smiled back in relief, and then laughed suddenly. "Ah, that was awkward. I haven't been that nervous since the beginning of high school. Anyway, here it is – my glorious room." She slid open the door dramatically, standing off to the side.

"A katana?"

The other girl's unexpected question threw Hisa off-balance, and she silently cursed herself for forgetting to hide it away from plain sight. Her mind raced for a believable explanation and she settled on one. "It was a gift from my father. He thinks I should be prepared to defend myself in case anything ever happens. It's a little bit overkill, though…" She laughed nervously, offering a silent apology to her father for tainting his image.

Mihoko nodded in apparent understanding. "I see… Father also often says things of a similar nature, although it's hard for me to tell if he's joking or not."

Hisa's eyes lit up at this mutual understanding. "Right? I appreciate the sentiment, but the actual likelihood of something happening to us is pretty low. Fathers worry too much. It's tough being an only daughter."

The blonde furrowed her brow in confusion. "But I thought you had brothers…? We just met them earlier."

Hisa wanted to smack herself for slipping up so soon. "Yes, but both of our families only have one daughter, right?" She was glad her brain worked well under tight situations. It probably didn't hurt that she played that way, too.

"Ah, you're right." Mihoko nodded agreeably, all of her suspicion gone.

The Kiyosumi leader walked over to one of her bookshelves. She ran her hand over the top of one of the rows fondly. "In any case, you read a lot, right?"

"Relatively speaking," her friend replied modestly.

She raised an eyebrow. "Even philosophy?"

"That… not so much." A blush. "I find that I don't do very well with abstract theories." She quickly added, "But I do like what I've read, however, even if some of it is a bit impractical. I don't see the benefits of living alone in nature without any contact with other humans. Humans are a very social species, aren't we? I would think a person would go crazy if they did that."

Hisa smirked at that, having a good guess at which author the other girl had read. She took out a few seat cushions from her closet and placed them at the table for the both of them to sit.

"That was Henry David Thoreau, I think." She struggled a little with the pronunciation of his name. "I'll admit, he's not the best person to read when you first start getting into philosophy. To be honest, I absolutely hated reading his stuff when we went over it at school. I ended up having an argument with my teacher over how his writings practically dripped elitism from its pages and, I absolutely agree with you on this, there really was no point in living in the woods just to feel special about it. If you wanted to do that to learn more about yourself and the world, then you should come back to civilization and spread what you've learned. I _hate_ elitists," she finished vehemently.

When Hisa finished her rant, she found the other girl staring at her. She blushed at the intensity of it.

"I said too much, didn't I? I know he's been dead for over a century, but he really gets under my skin," she explained weakly.

Mihoko shook her head vehemently. "No, that's not it at all! I just…" She paused to gather herself, and then continued quietly, "I thought Ueno-san looked really cool just then."

Another blush spread across her face, and Hisa looked at her in concern. This girl really blushed a lot. It could just be the unfamiliar house that made her nervous. That explanation seemed to make sense to her and she put it out of her mind.

"Really?" She asked in surprise. At the other girl's quick nod, she said graciously, "Thank you. That's the first time anyone's ever said that to me about my rants."

"It wasn't a rant," Mihoko stated plainly, and Hisa looked at her in mild bemusement. "It was an honest expression of Ueno-san's feelings. If others can't accept that, then they shouldn't expect others to listen to what they have to say, either."

"That might be a little harsh, but I understand what you mean. It's a really selfish world we live in, isn't it? I was surprised when everyone accepted my invitation for a combined training camp. I know we talked about this before, on the day you accepted, but it still amazes me even today. You'd think that the other schools would still be bitter about losing, but no. In fact, I'd say we bonded even more over mahjong, rather than become enemies over it. It's really so much more than a game."

"Another honest expression of Ueno-san's feelings," Mihoko teased lightly. "But yes, I do agree. I'm very grateful to mother for forcing me to play mahjong when I was younger. It was… frustrating for me, at first. Mother is something of a tactician, you see, and the other two people were my aunt and my older cousin. My aunt reached the international championships at one point, and my cousin is currently on the Tokyo University mahjong team. I'm sure you can imagine how my first few games went."

Hisa winced empathetically. "Ouch. I'm guessing they didn't hold back, either?"

Mihoko nodded. "They considered it rude to do so, even with a beginner. Needless to say, I wanted to quit not long after the first day of playing. It was only after I luckily managed to avoid last place in a match that my cousin gave me encouragement." She laughed a little. "Well, coming from him it was encouragement. It helped me keep going, although I was never fond of it until a few years later."

The Kazekoshi captain's voice turned melancholy towards the end. It made Hisa curious, but she knew enough not to ask for a more thorough explanation. The other girl had already told her plenty already, and she wondered if it was normal for her to say so much to a new friend. On second thought, it probably was, given her open and kind personality. Hisa decided to respond in kind, although it cut at her to have to hold back a few details in order to keep her yakuza connections a secret. Lying never felt good.

"I know what you mean," she said sympathetically. "My uncle taught me mahjong, and he was the same way." Hisa adopted a gruff tone to imitate her uncle. _"If you don't like losing, then get stronger."_

They both giggled at that.

"I understand what he was really trying to say now, but back then, it really made me mad. I swore I'd do everything I could to win against him. After a while, I even managed to learn how to switch the tiles on the table without anyone noticing. I won a few games doing that." At seeing the look on Mihoko's face, she explained hastily, "But I stopped soon afterwards. I thought I was really clever, but then uncle started to do the same to me in a game, and even though my hands were quicker, his were more nimble through experience. He completely destroyed me in that game and I never tried doing that again." She grinned ruefully at the memory.

The blonde nodded seriously. "Cheating can never lead to success."

Hisa winked teasingly. "Ah, but cheating _and_ skill can lead to many great successes."

"Ueno-san!" Mihoko said reprovingly.

"Just kidding, just kidding," she replied with an easygoing smile. Her eyes took on a devilish glint. "Mostly, anyway."

"Ueno-san…" Her voice trailed off warningly.

Hisa spread her hands helplessly. "What can I say? I can't help it sometimes. My fingers get itchy."

"Really now, I can't tell if you're being serious or not anymore." The blonde frowned prettily.

"All right, you caught me. I really was joking. I haven't done that in a game since that day." She added, "But sometimes I check it on an empty table to see if I can still do it. You never know when it could come in handy."

The other girl only shook her head in response.

"I know!" An idea crossed her mind and she took a hold of Mihoko's fingers from across the finger. "I can teach you! It'll be fun, I promise. Okay, now, you see this part of your fingers? You…" Her voice trailed off as she realized the hand underneath her own had become rigid and unmovable. She looked up to find herself an inch away from the other girl's face, which blushed an entirely new shade of red. Oh, that's right - personal space. But a small, evil part of her wanted to test something, so she stayed right where she was.

She waved a hand in front of the other girl's eyes. No response. She decided to try something else. Lifting her free hand, she slowly brought it towards the other girl's face, slowly pronouncing her name as she did so. "Mi-ho-ko-chan." At _–chan , _she poked the other girl's cheek, which was still as soft and smooth as she had remembered.

"H-hai?!" Mihoko scrambled back in surprise, suddenly brought out of her trance. Hisa became worried the moment she saw where the blonde was heading, backwards straight into the wall, where she was sure to hit her head. At the speed she was moving, her head was likely to crash into it hard, rather than just bump gently into it.

She moved swiftly, grabbing the nearby seat cushion as she jumped over the table towards Mihoko. Hisa quickly calculated how long it would take for her to beat the other girl to the wall, and realized she wouldn't make it if she just ran. She opted to slide. When her body fell short of reaching the wall, she used the hand that wasn't holding the cushion to propel herself forward a little more and jammed the cushion between Mihoko's head and the wall.

Hisa sighed in relief as she felt the soft _thud_ of impact on the cushion, and she rested her head on the pillow underneath her. That was convenient. If she knew there was a pillow here, she wouldn't have wasted time grabbing one near the table. Wait, pillow? She didn't remember putting a pillow near the wall.

She opened her eyes to find an eyeful of Mihoko's shirt and quickly jumped back.

"Well, that was fun. It's been a while since I used that much physical energy." Hisa laughed nervously, trying to ignore the fact she almost caused her guest to gain a possibly fatal head injury. No one was hurt, and nothing was broken. That's what's important, right?

She was expecting the blonde to be angry, or even walk out of the door indignantly. What she didn't expect, however, was her to fall apart right there and start crying.

_Ah, this isn't good. This isn't good at all._

A quick scan of her desk found that she had no tissues, which normally was not a problem. She never got sick, and she never spilled anything. She also rarely had guests in her room, as she stated earlier, so there was no justifiable reason for her to waste space on a box of it.

Hisa decided to offer the sleeve of her _yukata_ as a handkerchief, giving Haru a silent apology for the scrubbing she'd need to do to get the human liquids out of it. Thankfully, Mihoko only used it to wipe her tears away, even though two small rivulets still trickled down.

"There, there…" She petted the top of the blonde's head comfortingly.

"I'm sorry," came the muffled voice behind Hisa's sleeve. "I've imposed on Ueno-san as a guest, and I've been nothing but a bother ever since I've been here. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry…"

Hisa was taken aback by this sudden and completely untrue confession. She responded by hugging the girl in front of her fiercely. She didn't know what would cause such a nice girl to compulsively assume all the blame whenever anything unfavorable happened, but she knew it was something she would never leave her alone to deal with herself. She couldn't explain this inexplicable urge to help the girl before her. It certainly wasn't as if she was helpless or weak – far from it. Her actions during the tournaments and the combined training camp proved she was a strong and capable girl, if a bit too soft on her teammates. But with the way she was right now…

The redhead gripped her tighter and rubbed her back. "It's okay; it's not your fault. You didn't do anything wrong. Shh. No one's going to blame you; no one's going to hurt you. It's okay." She continued repeating herself in that same train of thought until the girl in her arms stopped trembling and her breathing slowed down.

"Are you all right now? Do you want me to get some tissues?" As she felt a small nod in the crook of her shoulder, she moved to stand up. A small amount of resistance in her clothes pulled her back and she looked down in its direction. She found Mihoko's fingers clutching at her _yukata_ and a look of helplessness from the girl herself. Hisa smiled comfortingly and sat back down in front of her, close enough to reassure her, but leaving enough room between them to talk comfortably.

The blonde reluctantly let go of the cloth between her fingers and took a deep breath, gathering herself. She sat back on her heels and folded her hands on her lap. Hisa was amazed at the apparent calmness of the girl and how easily she pulled herself together. It was also a little worrying. Just how often did this sort of thing occur?

"I… I'm fine now. Thank you, Ueno-san." She smiled gratefully, eyes red and wet from the leftover tears. They had stopped flowing at this point. "That was… probably horrible for you. I'm sor-"

"No apologies," she cut in firmly. At the stricken look in the other girl's eyes, she repeated more gently, "No apologies from you. We're friends, so I can do at least that much for you. If anything, I should be the one apologizing. So… I'm sorry. I put you in that sort of uncomfortable situation selfishly, without considering if you would be bothered by it at all. I let my curiosity take over my sensibility. I'm sorry. Please forgive me." She bowed formally, her forehead touching the cool tatami mats.

She felt a hand touch her shoulder lightly, and she looked up. Mihoko was smiling sadly. "Please don't do that, Ueno-san. I might cry again. I owe you too much already."

"Ah… yeah, maybe," she replied awkwardly, straightening up. A thought crossed her mind as she was struggling with what to say next. "Would you like me to show you to the upstairs bathroom? No one should be on the second floor during this hour, so you'd have some privacy while you wash up." She grinned optimistically as she added, "That way you'll be ready for dinner. If your parents don't mind, I'll have to insist that you stay. It's the least I can do. No, really. Please." The last part was said in response to the protest that was building up in the other girl's eyes.

"All right." Mihoko smiled in reluctant defeat.

Hisa waited outside the door of the bathroom as the other girl washed her red face with cold water. She called out over the sound of running water, "Would you like me to call your house and ask for permission while you're in there? All of our phones are new, so…"

The water was turned off. "Yes, please. Thank you. Normally I'd prefer to do it myself, but that's rarely possible."

Mihoko opened the door and was met face to face with Hisa, who was leaning against the wall opposite the door. The redhead waved merrily with a casual, "Yo." Mihoko blushed and looked away. Hisa frowned slightly. Maybe that blushing would go away with time. She didn't want the girl to be uncomfortable around her. That would make for an awkward friendship.

"Well, I'll go do that. Feel free to look around my room, except for my desk. I keep a few electronics in the drawers," she explained helpfully. "Otherwise I would let you browse through them to your heart's content. I like to share my questionable goods with my friends." She winked conspiratorially and went with the other girl to her room, where she made the call in front of the girl. She figured it would be even ruder to talk to the girl's parent away from her, as if she was hiding something.

"Ah, hello. This is Hisa Takei. Your daughter came over our house today. No, no, everything's fine. She's not a bother at all; it's been a pleasure having her here. Actually, I called to ask if it was all right to let her stay for dinner at our house. Ah, okay." Hisa turned to Mihoko, who looked at her curiously.

"Your mother wants you to shout into the phone from where you are, just to make sure you're really okay." The expression on Hisa's face clearly asked if this was normal, but Mihoko didn't answer the unspoken question.

"She's the friend I called yesterday! Her school finished in first place in the team tournaments! I'm perfectly fine!" She called out.

A sound of affirmation was heard in response and Hisa put the phone back to her ear.

"Mrs. Fukuji? Really? That's great! She can eat everything, right? No allergies to speak of? Great! Thank you very much, Mrs. Fukuji. We'll even drive her home for you. I completely agree with you that the streets are unsafe at night. I'll drop her off personally at your front door before 8 PM. Thank you again. Goodbye."

Hisa winked again at Mihoko. "See? I can be polite and proper when the occasion calls for it. Just don't tell my family; otherwise they'll make me act that way _all_ the time, and that wouldn't be very fun now, would it?"

The other girl giggled at her carefree attitude, which relieved Hisa. She was worried that the mood would remain awkward or melancholy between them after what just happened.

"Ueno-san…?" The silence had grown too long and Mihoko was the first to cut it.

"Ah, that reminds me," Hisa announced. "If it's not too much trouble, would you mind calling me 'Hisa' from now on? Ueno-san feels… really formal. But only if you're comfortable with it, so don't force yourself."

The blonde looked taken aback by the suggestion, but she tried it out anyway.

"H-Hi…sa…-san."

The blush came back again and Hisa internally sighed. Well, it was a start.

"Don't worry about it," she said reassuringly. "I'm sure we'll start calling each other by our first names sometime before we graduate."

"The thought of graduation somehow feels nostalgic, doesn't it?" Mihoko suddenly said.

Hisa blinked. "Yeah… I can't disagree with that. I've been spending extra time on the roof of the mahjong building at Kiyosumi just so I can soak up as much of the summer Kiyosumi air as possible. I know it's really sentimental, but I just don't care. I'll probably do the same during fall and winter. You know the feeling, right?"

The other girl nodded, smiling. "I do. And somehow you feel as if you're in an entirely different world when you look at your underclassmen. It's as if you've already moved into the working society and away from trivial things like school festivals. I don't know how I'll keep myself together doing graduation."

"Me too," she agreed. "Well, everyone expects me to just accept it with a smirk and a wave, so I guess I'll do that. Being the leader is tough; you can't show weakness or else your whole team falters. But at the same time, I'm really proud of them, too."

"Exactly. They've all improved so much. It's hard to remember that they're the same people that just joined the club almost days ago. I'll really miss these days," Mihoko said fondly.

Hisa suddenly laughed. "Look at us; we're talking like old men reminiscing over our memories. We'll be in our respective university mahjong clubs, right? We'll do fine, especially you. You seem to have this ability that makes everyone dote on you. I couldn't pull that off even if I tried."

"Ah, no, it's not like that! I just do what I can. Ueno-san is more impressive. She managed to pull her team to its first ever prefectural victory. I couldn't even do that for them during the two years I was captain. I… should have done more," she admitted quietly.

"Putting yourself down is not allowed," Hisa declared firmly. "You're one of the best players I've seen in my age group, and you're easily at the national level, as you've proven. You're kind, and your teammates all love you. It's hard to have that kind of skill _and_ heart."

Mihoko blushed lightly at the torrent of praise. "Th-Thank you, Ueno-san."

"The thought of university still bothers me, though. I really have no idea what to study or where to go. Maybe I should just go in economics. You can't really go wrong with that, right? Or maybe I could go for philosophy. The arguments would be fun in those classes. I can already imagine the frustrated looks my professors will give me." She smirked at the thought.

The other girl shook her head. "I think that would be cruel of you, Ueno-san. But if you ask me, I think you should study something you actually enjoy. I mean, once you marry you'll be a housewife, anyway, so you should make use of what time you have left."

Hisa stared at her in stunned silence, missing the hopeless tone in Mihoko's voice as she said that. The other girl had practically echoed her earlier thoughts about university right back at her. Maybe this was a sign. She really was fated to have a chained destiny.

She shook her head. No, no. She made her own destiny, her own luck, and right now, she was waiting on her specialty: the hell wait of her life. She couldn't lose. Her tile will come.

"Ueno-san?"

"No," she replied, to the confusion of Mihoko.

"What?"

"Ah. I meant I don't plan on becoming a housewife. I'll become successful on my own terms, and keep moving forward," she said determinedly. Then she added, "You should, too. You're too talented to waste your life away as a housewife. No offense meant if you actually looked forward to that, but that's what I think."

Mihoko smiled. "Thank you for that, Ueno-san, but I will do what I have to. The least I can do is make the people that I love happy in repayment for all they've done for me."

Hisa frowned. "That sort of thinking isn't allowed here. What do _you_ want to do, Mihoko-san?"

The sudden use of her first name caused her eyes to widen in surprise.

"I… I…" She looked down, apparently at a loss for words.

"That'll be your homework for this summer," the redhead said lightly. "Anyway, there's the bell for dinner. Come on. If we're lucky, we might have sushi tonight! If you don't hurry, I'll take all of the fatty tuna for myself. I won't lose to anyone!" She smirked over her shoulder as she goaded the other girl into racing against her.

"W-Wait! Ueno-san!" Mihoko almost tripped over herself in her rush to catch up.

* * *

"You look like you had fun." Mihoko's mother smiled at Mihoko as she walked back in after calling out that she was home.

"I did," she smiled, a little breathless from running out of the parking lot into the apartment complex with Hisa. It had started to rain during dinner, and the redhead had made it a game to see who could make the other more soaked from stepping on puddles. Mihoko pulled in the girl from behind her.

"Mother, this is Hisa Ue--- I mean, Takei. Hisa Takei."

The redhead grinned at the use of her last name and bowed grandly. "Hello Mrs. Fukuji. I was wondering if I could ask for your daughter's hand in marriage. She'd make an excellent housewife, as I'm sure you've noticed."

"Wh-Wh-Wh-Wh-What are you saying, Ueno-san?!" Mihoko's face was such a dark red that one would almost assume all of her blood had jumped there in a heartbeat.

"I wouldn't mind, although she does have a bad habit of snoring in her sleep," Mihoko's mother replied airily.

"Mother!"

Hisa and Masuyo both laughed.

Mihoko's mother wiped an amused tear from her eye. "I'm sorry, dear, but you really are too easy to tease. I'm glad you two became friends. I'm sure that with you around, she'll be able to enjoy herself more and take life a little less seriously."

"Likewise, Mrs. Fukuji. I'm sure she can teach me a little more about responsibility, too," Hisa replied modestly.

"Oh, has she mentioned anything about a mahjong parlor?" Masuyo asked.

"Yes," Hisa lied easily, sensing that the other girl was instructed to talk about it with her. "However, it's been a long day, and we talked about so many things. I'm afraid I've forgotten most of what she said. I'm sorry, I have a horrible memory."

"That's all right," Mihoko's mother said kindly. "My sister owns a mahjong parlor, and I was wondering if you'd be interested in visiting with Mihoko-chan? Players of all ages from the surrounding area frequent it, and they have a weekly tournament. It's nothing as grand as the prefectural tournaments, of course, but it should be a fun way to spend part of your summer, if you're not too busy with studying."

Hisa's eyes lit up. "That sounds interesting. I don't mind coming at all. Please call me whenever you make plans to go; I'd love to go with Mihoko. Although she probably makes both kids and adults cry from her skill."

Masuyo laughed. "That's not too far from the truth."

"Oh, I can't believe you two at all," Mihoko said in quiet frustration.

"Don't worry about it," Hisa said teasingly. It was starting to become her trademark response to the other girl's worries. "All right, I'll see you later."

"Take care!" Masuyo called.

"Good bye, and thank you!" Mihoko called out.


	9. Chapter 9

Cytrus – My version of Hisa likes to show off… although that doesn't explain away my writing deficiencies. I'll try to work on it more.

Also, in case anyone was curious about this in the last chapter: Japan has this cultural phenomenon where women quit their jobs immediately upon marriage, and then become a housewife until their children are all grown up. Only afterwards will she find employment again (and even then, it's not like every woman chooses to get another job after her children are grown). Not everyone does it, but it's a cultural norm.

And "Class S" relationships need to die. That's all I'm saying.

Thank you very much for staying with us thus far. (I've also joined the crowd and created a Twitter account to post progress on Fireflies.)

_Oba_ – "Aunt" in Japanese. They say this instead of their aunt's name.

* * *

The alarm clock next to Mihoko rang loudly. She extended her arm from underneath the covers and fumbled to find the top of it to turn the bell-based alarm off. A quiet _click_ shut it off promptly and she rose, rubbing the sleep away from her eyes.

In her sleep-induced daze, she tried to remember just why she set the alarm in the first place. Mihoko usually woke up early without the aid of an alarm, as she also slept early. Then she remembered: Father was coming home today. She didn't want to oversleep.

She quickly slid out of her bed and fixed the sheets so they were neat. As she started getting ready for the day she wondered whether mother had already decided on what to cook for dinner. Her father was not a picky man when it came to food, and he always seemed pleasantly surprised whenever he came home to find that dinner had already been prepared for him.

She had once asked him why he reacted that way.

He answered by patting her on the head and smiling gently. _"One should never take the enjoyable things in life for granted."_

Mihoko didn't understand what he meant back then, as she had been scarcely old enough to speak, but she understood it very well now. The memories of her time spent with the Kazekoshi mahjong club, the tournaments, the fleeting time she had with Kiyomi-neechan… everything ended eventually, and she would never regret any of it.

She smiled as she thought of Hisa from the other day, a light blush staining her cheeks as she recalled her mortified embarrassment at breaking down in front of the other girl. Again. She couldn't imagine what was running through the girl's mind when it happened, but she felt lucky that the redhead hadn't recoiled in disgust at her tears. Despite everything else about her personality that said otherwise, Mihoko knew she herself was a very childish individual. She loved fiercely, she hated losing, and she was arrogant enough to believe that unfortunate things could have been avoided if she had just tried harder.

Of all people, she didn't want Hisa to see that side of her, but it happened anyway. The feeling of security from Hisa's arms, her understanding smile, her unwavering kindness… it was all too perfect. Mihoko didn't want to wake up from this dream, if this was a dream, but she didn't want to make herself vulnerable to harm and start to hope for something more to develop.

These feelings she held for Hisa were immature at best, she knew, and no one would think it proper for her to continue to hold on to them. Adulthood was approaching her quickly, and she knew that one day she would need to marry someone respectable to further her family's recent success. Her parents might say otherwise, but without them, she wouldn't be where she was now. At the very least, she can try to remain friends with Hisa.

Friends… what an unexpected twist of fate. But if she were to decide where she wanted the two of them to stand, it would be friendship, no matter how strong her feelings were. Things were better that way. If she never relied on the kindness of others, if she was the one who put in all the effort in her relationships… she will never get hurt by her expectations. She learned long ago that unconditional love was the best defense for the weakness of the heart.

"Good morning, Mihoko-chan," her mother greeted her as she came down the stairs of their two-story apartment.

She smiled in response. "Good morning, mother. Do you need any help?"

Masuyo was already cutting vegetables. On the dining table rested Mihoko's breakfast, still hot. She assumed her mother had already eaten and had washed her own plates already. This was a rather common occurrence for them. Breakfast was always a casual affair, prepared and eaten whenever the person happened to wake. Today was only slightly different in that her mother already knew what time her daughter would come down.

"No, you should eat your food before it gets cold. Your father should be home around lunch time, so you'll have plenty of time to prepare his lunch." Her mother smiled kindly. "I know you're looking forward to it, so I won't argue with you about it today."

"Thank you, mother." She took a seat and said a quiet _itadakimasu_ before eating in small bites. It was unseemly to gulp down one's food, although she couldn't deny that watching Hisa do so was amusing. She wondered if the other girl had noticed the money she placed on the desk before they left for dinner. Mihoko had silently placed it there since she won the mahjong match, although she admitted that winning that match had really been an unbelievable stroke of luck.

Their two homes were really quite different, though, even if one ignored the structural differences. Hisa seemed to respect her father, certainly, but they seemed to have a somewhat distant relationship, as if he already deemed her old enough to take care of herself. It was nothing like the relationship between Mihoko and her own parents. Strangely, the other girl's mother seemed to be missing. There had been no indication of her being deceased or separated from her husband, as Hisa did mention that she lived there as well. Her absence was treated as a normal, but it was all very curious to Mihoko.

Ah, what was she doing? It was still so early in the morning, and the first thing on her mind was Hisa? Father was coming home! It would be rude to him if all she focused on today were her memories of the other day, pleasant as they were.

"I'll take care of the dishes; you go on ahead and buy what we need for the rest of today's meals," her mother called out to her as she stood up from her finished meal. "We also need more eggs, so please add that to the list."

"Yes, mother, I will. Thank you!"

* * *

The rattling of a key in the doorway signaled the return of Satoru Fukuji.

Masuyo walked to the foot of the stairway to call out to her daughter, who was studying quietly in her room. "Mihoko-chan…?" A blur of blonde hair passed by her eyes and the woman smiled, unsurprised.

"Father! Welcome home!" She greeted her father at the doorway, startling him for a moment before he burst into hearty laughter.

He was a surprisingly compact and unimpressive looking man for someone who founded one of Japan's fastest growing companies. What he lacked in physical build, however, he made up with intelligence and understanding. His quiet voice was steady and sincere, which endeared many of his employees to him, as he never lied to them, nor asked for more than what was humanly possible. Luckily, his personality was the same whether he was at his home or office, which is more that can be said of many businessmen.

"Same to you, my dear Mihoko-chan! It's been months since I've last seen you." He swept her up into a hug, spinning her around as if she weighed no more than a feather.

Masuyo laughed from her place a little further in from the entrance. "Welcome back, you old fart." She winked. "It's been quiet without you here to spoil Mihoko-chan."

He stuck his tongue out at her childishly. "It's good to be back, but who are you calling an 'old fart'? My farts are quite new and fresh, thank you." Satoru placed Mihoko down gently.

"You two still act like newlyweds. Honestly," Mihoko said reprovingly.

"Ah, well. You know how we are," her father said lightly as he shared a sad smile with Masuyo over Mihoko's head, which he patted fondly.

"Indeed," her mother agreed. "If you don't hurry, lunch will get cold. Mihoko-chan prepared it especially for you, you know. You should be more considerate," she said teasingly.

"What? She did, did she?" He asked with exaggerated surprise. "How rude of me. I'll go wash up right away. Excuse me, young lady," he said to Mihoko as if she were a stranger, "I need to feast upon my daughter's homemade meal. She's quite a good cook, don't you know? You'll have to forgive me for leaving you so soon, but this is quite a matter of urgency."

Mihoko giggled as he rushed off to the bathroom with a final pat on her head.

The two women went to the kitchen/dining room area, where Masuyo had heated up the meal Mihoko had prepared earlier. She had received a call from Satoru half an hour earlier, saying he would be home soon. She didn't tell her daughter, knowing the girl would be more delighted with his sudden entrance. If her mother had told her, she would have wasted time being anxious and would have been entirely unable to focus on her books.

When he returned, they all sat down. They dug in after a chorus of _itadakimasu_.

"Naoko-chan will be arriving tomorrow." Masuyo announced shortly.

Satoru looked up from his food, which he could not stop praising, to the embarrassment of his daughter. "Is that so?" He smiled. "I'm glad our little Mihoko-chan is finally bringing home a friend. You must be looking forward to it."

Mihoko nodded, unsure of what to say. Naoko's visit was sure to be interesting, given the outspoken nature of the girl, but she wasn't sure if the bespectacled girl would enjoy spending time here. Despite being roommates for two years in a row, she didn't know much about the girl beyond her family background and love of books and solitude. Politeness had kept her from finding out too much.

"Speaking of which," her mother added, "she did bring home a friend the other day. You remember 'Ueno-san', right?" At the man's nod she continued, "She's actually Hisa Takei. I'm not sure about the reason for the name change, but she was kind enough to drop off our daughter after a day of mahjong at her house."

He raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Is that so? I wasn't aware that many girls drove these days." Satoru turned to his daughter. "How about it? Do you want me to invest in a few driving lessons for you? It could be handy."

Mihoko fidgeted at the sudden offer. "Ah… No, that's okay, father. Ueno-san can't drive," she corrected, recalling the other girl's explanation of putting off her own driving lessons. "She asked her family's driver to take us home."

Her father's eyebrows climbed even higher, making his face almost comical to look at. "Really? I wonder if she's related to anyone we know, if her family is that rich."

"It's possible," her mother agreed. "But entirely unimportant. It's probably better that she is rich. You know how some kids can be these days; attaching themselves to a wealthy friend just for the benefits. At least this way we know the two girls are on equal footing, so there's no need to worry about our daughter being taken advantage of."

"That's true…" He smiled uneasily. "Although that might be a harsh judgment on today's youth. I'm sure they're not all that bad."

"Naoko-san isn't!" Mihoko defended her friend, and then blushed when her parents looked at her from the outburst. "I mean, she's always been sincere with me."

Her mother nodded firmly. "She has, but I think that's due to her own cynicism. It's probably been hard on her, being the youngest child of a pro that doesn't play mahjong. The rest of her siblings have already broken into the international field, so there was a lot of attention on her from the media. I can't blame the child, really."

"Either way," Satoru changed the subject, "it will still be a pleasure to have her over. I'm a lucky man. This summer I'll have not one, but _three_ beautiful ladies to come home to every weekend."

"Quick," Masuyo whispered loudly to her daughter, "pop his ego before it gets too big, otherwise we'll never leave this house alive!"

"How cruel, and here I was just trying to be nice. Fine then, take this!" Her father quickly stole a piece of one of Masuyo's side dishes, to which she squawked loudly and responded in kind.

Mihoko giggled at the scene before her. She really was quite glad for the weekends.

* * *

The blonde was studying in her room that morning after a day out with her father yesterday at the local amusement park. It had been a quiet day so far. Her parents were downstairs doing what they usually did. She could hear the faint echoes of one of her mother's old war films playing on the television. It actually helped her concentrate, as she found it a comforting relic of her childhood.

"Boo."

Hands suddenly clapped on Mihoko's shoulders and the girl nearly jumped out of her seat in fright. She spun around with ineffectual fists held out in front of her, only to find Naoko grinning down on her, the sunlight streaming in from the window reflecting off of her glasses. She released a relieved breath, not realizing she had held it in for so long.

The other girl laughed and adjusted her glasses, the sunlight finally glancing off at an angle that let her eyes become visible through the lens.

"Naoko-san! You scared me. Please knock before ent—" Mihoko paused in mid-sentence when she realized something. "Ah! Welcome! I didn't know you had arrived. I'm so sorry! I should have greeted you and helped you with your bags!"

"It's okay, it's okay!" Her friend hurried to reassure her. She took a seat on Mihoko's neatly made bed and bounced experimentally on it, comparing the springiness to the dormitory mattresses. "I told your parents I wanted to surprise you. Anyway, put those books away. We need to talk about something more important than school."

Mihoko blinked in confusion, but complied readily. She had a sneaking suspicion about which 'something important' Naoko was referring to.

"So where are we at Operation Ueno? Have you raised the first flag yet?" She asked interestedly, leaning forward from the bed.

The blonde almost sighed internally. She knew it. "Flag…? I don't quite understand you," the blonde asked, puzzled. Even if she knew what Naoko was talking about, sometimes her obscure references went over her head. It was probably from a video game.

"Never mind," she replied impatiently. "Have you tried walking a puppy around her neighborhood? I've read that it's an excellent conversation starter. She sounds like a dog person, anyway, so that would give you even more of an advantage," Naoko reasoned.

Mihoko furrowed her brows in thought. "Ah… you really should not label people so readily, Naoko-san. And I can't just suddenly buy a puppy for that reason. That feels… manipulative."

"Nonsense! It's perfectly fair, like I said before. You can't just wait for the red string of fate to connect you – you have to grasp it and lasso it around your partner and pull them in with all your might!" She exclaimed.

"'_Lasso'_?" Mihoko repeated the foreign phrase in surprise. Since when did Naoko read western novels? Then again, the better question would be what _didn't_ the other girl read?

Naoko nodded. "Yes. Exactly."

"I think that's a little excessive… I'm happy with just being friends with Ueno-san," she said awkwardly.

The other girl's eyes lit up at this admission. "What's this? _Friends?_ You've leveled up already, and you didn't even tell me? I _knew_ you seemed different when I saw you smiling dreamily at your notes earlier," she accused.

Mihoko blushed instantly. "Y-You saw me?"

Naoko blinked. "I was actually joking, but something must have happened if you really were doing that."

The blonde wanted to bury herself for giving everything away so soon. Naoko really did know her too well. She was saved from further questioning by a gentle knock on her door, which revealed itself to be from her mother.

She came in with two glasses of iced tea and placed them on Mihoko's desk.

"Will Naoko-chan be coming with you tonight?" Masuyo asked her daughter.

"Ah, I haven't asked her yet." Mihoko turned to her friend. "Would Naoko-san be interested in visiting a mahjong parlor? There will be a lot of young children there," she added, knowing her friend's weakness for children.

Naoko winced at the word 'mahjong'. "No, that's okay. I'll help you out around the apartment instead."

Masuyo frowned thoughtfully. "Hm, that's a shame. In any case, I've already called Hisa-chan. She's agreed to meet up with you on the way there." She raised an eyebrow at her daughter's halting '_hai'_ of agreement, but was distracted by Naoko's sudden response to pay too much heed to it.

"Actually, I've changed my mind. I'll be tagging along."

Mihoko couldn't describe the sinking feeling that occupied her gut at her friend's abrupt compliance. Whatever it was, it was probably warning her that her friend just might do something rash, and she was fairly sure it all started the moment her mother mentioned Hisa's name in front of Naoko.

* * *

"So that's what happened? Are you sure you're not glorifying her in any way? Or leaving out important details?" Her friend questioned her seriously.

At the intense prodding of Naoko, Mihoko was forced to tell her what happened at Hisa's house as they walked to her aunt's place. She tried to be as objective as possible and kept her blushing to a minimum, but even with that the glint in the other girl's eye hadn't gone away at all.

"That's honestly how things happened, Naoko-san. I wouldn't lie to you," she assured her friend.

Naoko frowned thoughtfully. "Hm…" She looked up and noticed something. "Oh, hey. Someone's waving to us from the entrance. Is that Takei?"

Mihoko noted curiously her lack of an honorific but looked in the direction she called attention to. It was a little too dark to see, but if the red hair was any indication then yes, it was Hisa.

"I believe so," she said quietly. The blonde suddenly grabbed the other girl's arm in a moment of panic. "Please, Naoko-san, don't do anything untoward."

The bespectacled girl patted her friend's shoulder reassuringly. "Everything I do will only be done to further the cause of Operation Ueno. Don't worry."

Mihoko wanted to wring her hands in worry. Why does everyone tell her not to worry right before they do something that _will_ make her worry?

"Hey Mihoko-san," Hisa greeted, once they were close enough to talk. She smiled at Naoko, uncertain of who she was.

"G-Good evening, Ueno-san." Mihoko bowed quickly. "This is Naoko Tohno, my roommate from Kazekoshi."

"Ah, pleased to meet you." The redhead extended a hand.

Naoko took it and gave a firm shake. "Likewise."

Hisa grinned. "Looks like you already know of me, as my introduction isn't forthcoming. Glad to know my reputation precedes me."

Mihoko blushed in response to that, realizing her mistake. "Ah! I'm sorry, Ueno-san! I didn't mean-!"

"Relax," the red head winked. "I'm honored that you would speak of me when I'm not around. My ego gets hungry sometimes, so it's nice to be fed once in a while."

The bespectacled girl raised an eyebrow. "You're pretty arrogant for someone who just became first name basis with Mihoko-chan just a few days ago."

"Really?" Hisa smirked, recognizing a challenge when she saw one. "I wouldn't call it arrogance. It's more like I happen to know how these things work."

Naoko snorted. "And your modesty needs work, too."

"And what about you?" The redhead countered easily. "You're rather self-righteous for someone who's just her roommate. Are you sure she's comfortable with you speaking on her behalf like that?"

They both looked at Mihoko, who looked about to cry at the brewing animosity between the two.

Naoko shot a glare at Hisa, as if blaming her for Mihoko's current state. The glare also served as a warning: _You may have won this battle, but not the war._

"Maybe… we should go in?" The blonde offered hesitantly, hoping to stop whatever was happening before it started.

"The enemy is stronger than previously assessed. The battle plan must be revised. Hope is not lost yet. The mission will succeed," the bespectacled girl muttered quietly.

Mihoko blinked at the string of sounds coming from her roommate but wasn't close enough to hear.

Meanwhile, Hisa took her hand and smiled. "Let's do that. The mahjong tiles might wait for us forever, but time certainly won't. I'd hate to be rude to your aunt and show up after closing time."

Naoko twitched at the word 'mahjong'. She strode up to the two and separated their hands, taking them into her own so that all of their hands were linked. Mihoko didn't even have enough time to react to Hisa's touch, which was gone in an instant. Naoko hated to do this to her friend, but it was clear that the redhead had no idea what she meant to the blonde, and being the responsible friend that she was, she didn't want to see her friend suffer more than could be helped.

The bespectacled girl gritted her teeth as she forced out a smile. "Yes, let's."

They walked to the doorway, where they unlinked in order to get in easily.

"Oh? It's Mihoko-chan! It's been a while since I've last seen you in person." A woman in her late twenties came over to them from behind the counter and hugged the blonde fondly. "You've grown as a player. I saw all of your matches. I was there that day at the tournaments, you know. I'm so proud of you!"

"Thank you, Oba," Mihoko responded in embarrassment at the praise.

As she let go of the blonde, the woman noticed the other two girls.

"Ah, look at this. Your friends are just as famous as you are, Ms. First Place," she unwittingly echoed her older sister's nickname for Mihoko. "It's a pleasure to meet you in person, Hisa Takei, Naoko Tohno." She faced each of the two girls as she named them, clapping them each on the shoulder. "Call me Michiru. This place isn't much, but please enjoy yourselves, free of charge."

All three girls reached for their wallets, about to protest, but the woman already had a plan. She winked and put a finger to her lips. "If you even try to get out of it, I'll tell the whole place Mihoko-chan's back. They'll find out eventually, but I don't think you want them to know all at once."

Hisa and Naoko turned to watch Mihoko curiously, waiting to get any sort of signal from her. The blonde in question sagged her shoulders in defeat and smiled ruefully. She looked to her friends. "She's right. I'm sorry for the inconvenience, but it wouldn't be good if Oba did that."

"I don't mind, but… why?" Naoko asked curiously.

Hisa smirked. "Let me guess, Mihoko-san's fan club is more rabid than most?"

Michiru grinned at Hisa's theory. "Bingo. Anyway, don't let me keep you here. Come in, come in."

The girls walked in from the entryway with Naoko and Hisa unconsciously walking in front of Mihoko to hide her from view.

"I remember hearing there was a tournament today," Hisa mentioned. "Are we all planning to compete?"

"I'm not," Naoko said flatly.

"I'd like to see how everyone has improved, so yes, I'll be competing." Mihoko looked bashful at her selfishness.

The redhead grinned. "Really? In that case I'll sit out. I wouldn't want to outshine the return of the prodigal daughter."

"N-No! Ueno-san should play if she wants to. I don't want her to stop on account of me…" Mihoko protested weakly.

Naoko sighed. "Let her do something nice. It's better than watching her be smug about winning."

"What are you talking about?" Hisa asked without a hint of guile. "I'm never smug about winning. It happens too often for me to be smug about it at all," she added, not without a hint of a smirk.

"That's _exactly_ what I'm talking about." Naoko frowned at the other girl.

Mihoko sighed, deciding that she couldn't stop the inevitable. "I'll go and sign up at the table over there."

As she was doing just that, she felt a small tug on her shirt. A glance showed her it was attached to a small boy. She bent her knees to crouch next to him at eye-level and smiled kindly.

"Mihoko-neechan, Mihoko-neechan, did you see my score?" He asked excitedly.

"No, I didn't. Would you like to show me, Kenta-kun?"

He nodded vigorously and grabbed her hand, dragging her over to the weekly top scores. She could see that Kenta's name was displayed as highest scorer in the children's division.

Mihoko hugged him and petted his head. "Well done! You've gotten a lot better," she said, recalling when he had trouble even remembering how to win a hand.

"Yeah!" He grinned widely. "Thanks, Mihoko-neechan!" He ran off to play with his friends.

As Mihoko stood up, she felt more eyes on her.

"Look, look, it's Fukuji-san. She won first place at the prefecturals this year!"

"No kidding! Kids these days grow so fast…"

"Hey, it's Mihoko-san! Do you think she'd want to play with us?"

"Nah, man! She totally creamed those Ryuumonbuchi guys at the tournaments. There's no way she'd want to play against boring guys like us."

"You're wrong, wrong! Mihoko-chan would never be like that. She's our friend, right?"

"Hey, she signed up for today's tournament! This'll be awesome!"

"Yeah, if you want to lose. Think with the right head, for once. You're always like that when it comes to her."

Michiru walked into the main room and called for everyone's attention.

"All right everyone! I've posted the order for today's tournament. Please take your seats after you find it and we can begin. Winner gets two tickets to a hot springs resort!"

The ensuing matches lasted only a few short hours. In the end, Mihoko reached the quarter finals. One of her opponents happened to be an old man she had known since she was young.

"Mihoko-chan," he greeted her shortly. "Good to see you back."

She smiled. "It's good to be back, Usui-san."

Mihoko gathered her tiles and was often one or two tiles away from winning on a closed hand, but the old man kept winning off of tsumos. She was lucky that she was never dealer when it happened, so she never had to pay twice the amount of points that the other players did, but she did feel her points slipping away from her. What was worse, she often called riichi when she was one tile away, which meant she deposited 1000 points into the pot for whoever won that round, and Usui usually won that round. In the last round, she finally called riichi after an eternity of waiting for the right tiles to come to her. The other two players seemed exhausted and about ready to give up.

"R-Ron! Ryan Pei Ko, 2 Dora. 7,700."

The player who dealt the tile only had 5,000 points left, so the game ended with Usui in first place and Mihoko in second, which meant she didn't qualify for the finals. She sighed but accepted her defeat graciously.

"You've improved," Usui smiled. "I can't get a _ron_ from you anymore."

"Thank you, Usui-san. It was a good game. I've learned a lot from you, once again," she said modestly.

He laughed. "You'll become better than me in a few years time. You have talent, girl. Don't you dare stop playing."

"I won't, Usui-san," she agreed. "Good luck in the finals."

"I'll need it." He wheezed out another laugh. "These bones need a hot springs bath. It's been too long since I've had one."

Seeing that their idol had lost, many of the players at other tables paused their games and called out encouragement to her.

"Maybe I should start selling official Mihoko-chan merchandise," Naoko said wryly when the three were together again.

"Naoko-san, you shouldn't joke like that," Mihoko said in embarrassment.

"Oh, I don't know," Hisa grinned at the thought. "We'd probably make a lot of money off of it, judging by how these guys are looking at you. I wonder how much your panties would be worth?"

"U-Ueno-san! I can't believe you just said that!"

"I seriously hope that was a joke," Naoko said flatly, most of her animosity cooling off during the time the two spent talking while Mihoko played.

"It was, it was," the redhead reassured them. "If I was going to do something like that, I wouldn't be foolish enough to tell you about it."

"That really doesn't make me feel any better," Mihoko said miserably as they walked out the door, waving goodbye to the people inside.

"Don't worry about it." Hisa clapped a hand on her shoulder and gave a firm squeeze.

Naoko sighed. "That's usually considered a cause for worry by normal people, you know."

The redhead frowned slightly at this. "But normal is boring, wouldn't you say?"

"It is," Mihoko agreed, her eyes shining at how cool Hisa looked right then.

"Agh! Not you, too! You're crazy, the both of you!" Naoko walked off ahead of them, leaving the two alone.

Hisa shared an amused grin with the blonde at the other girl's reaction.

"That was fun. Thanks for inviting me tonight. I'm looking forward to competing in their next tournament, so I hope you prepare yourself," she said with a wink.

"Ah, it was my pleasure," Mihoko replied with a light blush, glad the shadows hid her face. "I'll be ready."

"Oy, you two!" Naoko called out from ahead of them. "No flirting allowed. This is a public area, you know."

The blonde only blushed even more.

Hisa shouted back, "What, are you jealous? Come back here, already. There's no reason for you to miss out on all the fun."

"I'll pass, thanks!" The other girl responded in annoyance.

The redhead turned to Mihoko. "Well, it looks like it's getting late. I'll see you later. Call me whenever you want to hang out. I'll try to track down my brothers for you if you want to play with them again; they can be a little impossible to find sometimes."

"I will. Thank you again for coming." The blonde smiled.

"Ah, there it is. The pretty smile. You should smile more often. Anyway, it wasn't a problem. Later!" She waved as she walked in the direction of her house. Hisa took out a mobile phone, presumably to call her driver to pick her up.

Mihoko waved back and ran ahead to catch up with Naoko, who had waited for her to finish talking with Hisa.

"She's all right. You could do worse," Naoko admitted grudgingly. The redhead's arrogance still got under her skin.

"I'm glad I have your approval," the blonde replied cheerily, still obviously pleased from Hisa's compliment.


	10. Chapter 10

Character development! I think.

Thank you for reading and reviewing!

* * *

Mihoko woke up early that weekday morning to prepare herself properly for the business deal she agreed to help her father with. She was to arrive at his office and handle the negotiations, using her _natural attributes_ to help throw them off balance, and then take advantage of their weakened state to quickly change the terms in their favor. With her eyes, it was easier to read between the lines of official documents and counter their original intent when the people who wrote them were unable to muster up a proper defense in light of her presence.

With that said, she had to be dressed to kill, but in a way that spoke of class and power, not seduction. Even so, her father always looked deeply troubled by the transformation that took over his daughter whenever he called upon her assistance. It was one thing to see your daughter look and behave as an adult, but it was quite another to see her use that as a weapon.

She was glad that their apartment was large enough to hold a guest room, where Naoko was currently sleeping. While she did tell her friend she would be helping her father at the office, she didn't specify exactly what she was going to do. Mihoko wasn't sure how she would explain away her clothes, which were currently far too mature for anywhere a high school girl like herself would be going to.

Clothes and make-up really could change a person, though, she mused as she checked her reflection in the mirror. Her shoulder-length blonde hair had been brought up and held in place with a hair stick, which emphasized her slender neck. The gray skirt suit she wore was fitting for the season, although she personally would have preferred to use a cream-colored suit. She debated whether she should use a shorter skirt or a longer one, but decided to stay conservative just in case the businessmen today were especially arrogant. She barely used any accessories, opting for a simple watch on her left wrist. Her make-up was lightly done, but helped to accentuate the few sharp curves she had around her cheeks and jaw line. Not bad, considering it had been over a year since she had dressed up so formally.

Her father had given her the printed documents that would be discussed today over the weekend. She had looked over them after she finished studying with Naoko, whereupon the other girl went to bed. From what she could tell, it looked like Matsuri Corporation was looking to sell all of their assets to Fukuji Corporation. It was a company that specialized in producing holiday trends and decorations, but due to mismanagement and wide-scale corporate theft, was left on the verge of bankruptcy.

Mihoko wasn't sure why her father had asked her help in this. It looked to be a straightforward negotiation where the two companies would hash out how much Fukuji Corp. would pay upfront and what percentage of the profits that Matsuri Corp.'s current board of directors would receive over a period of time. There must be something more to this. Hopefully her right eye would be of use.

She arrived at the building an hour before the meeting. The polished glass of the newly-expanded company building glittered in the sunlight. A few more stories were built upon the top of the building just last year. A painted acrylic rendition of the company's mascot, a bright blue smiling dolphin, was placed in the middle of the sidewalk. She resisted the urge to pet it as she walked past.

Fukuji Corporation was a company that specialized in producing toys, which included board games such as mahjong. They were the company that introduced the currently-used electronic tables and were well on their way on the road of revolutionizing all other board games.

Mihoko checked in at the front desk and made her way into the elevator, which could be controlled by using one's voice. She felt the tears starting to develop as she realized much of the technology in this building was made usable for her and her alone. A firm shake of her head cleared away such feelings as she reminded herself to focus.

She knocked on the thick oak of her father's office door, her flat-heeled shoes sinking into the lush red carpet that lined the entire floor. A sound of assent from inside was heard and she opened the heavy door gently. She was surprised to find a man in a grey suit with a pink scar trailing down the right side of his face, rendering his right eye blind. He was sitting casually across her father, who was behind his desk. Both men looked up at her entrance, and then stood politely.

"Ah, Mihoko-chan! You're early. This is-" Her father was about to introduce the other man, but he was cut off.

"I'll be taking my leave now. It's been good talking to you again, Fukuji-san." He nodded shortly to Mihoko as he passed her and closed the door behind him, the faint smell of cigars and cologne lingering in his wake.

Mihoko could only stare at the closed door in surprise. What a rude man! The lack of bowing, cutting her father off in mid-sentence, and his bare acknowledgement of her presence was highly unusual behavior. She gave her father a questioning glance.

"Sit down, sit down," he requested of her earnestly.

When she did so, placing her clutch (which held a notepad, a pen, and business cards) on the table, he began to explain.

"That was Kuon-san, one of the higher-ranking yakuza members of the Abe-gumi." At her alarmed expression, he said hastily, "No, we're not involved with them! Don't worry. Or at least, not yet. He mentioned that the Abe-gumi was interested in investing in our company. We didn't get far in our talks before you arrived, thankfully."

Mihoko frowned slightly at the news. "Investment? But that would meant they want a share of our profits. Do you really think that's wise, father? Before long, they'll be demanding more than we can afford."

"That's true," he agreed readily. "On the other hand, they were also offering us protection. I've been seriously looking into that type of service lately. It's dangerous that I leave you and your mother alone more often than not, and with you at school, there's no one to help your mother defend herself. It seriously worries me." His brows were furrowed over his hands, which were clasped in front of his face, elbows resting on his desk.

She blinked. Her emotions were already stored away for the time being, so all she had to react with was her logic and reasoning. "But… the yakuza? Father, they're more than unpredictable, and very likely to go back on their word."

He nodded gravely. "Yes, but they also have control of this region. I'm not sure what would happen if we were to refuse. I'm a sheltered man, Mihoko-chan – I don't understand anything of how the underworld works." He continued lightly, "However, I do know Kuon-san from our high school days. I'm not sure how much loyalty he feels towards me, nor whether the Abe-gumi purposely sent someone that I knew, but I think we have a better chance with him than anyone else. He's a bit curt, but the Kuon-san I remember was not a bad man."

"I see." Mihoko thought quickly. "Was this why you wanted me to come, father? The deal with Matsuri Corporation looks like it will go through smoothly. It doesn't look as if there's much I need to do to help it along."

He laughed and scratched the back of his head boyishly. "Yes, you've found me out. That was the pretense I used in front of your mother. I'm sorry, but I had to keep you in the dark as well. Your mother is frighteningly sharp; much like you." Satoshi continued more seriously. "But yes, I need your advice on how to deal with them. You're much better with people than I can ever hope to be, and you deal with that Kubo woman on a daily basis. What do you think?"

Mihoko closed her eyes, a dozen possible scenarios racing through her mind. There were so many ways this could end badly, but if she thought it out carefully, it would be possible to profit from this connection. She decided on a possible route and opened her eyes, facing her father seriously.

"Is it possible to seek an audience with the head of the Abe-gumi through Kuon-san? I assume he's powerful enough to report to the head directly. It will be easier to talk with him than a middle man, no matter how high up the middleman may be. A leader's word is considered binding." She continued her explanation after a breath, her mouth tongue working to catch up to her brain. "There are a few things we can try to bribe him with to leave us alone. We can also try to reach a business agreement with him to help us expand into the foreign market. They're likely just as newly wealthy and powerful as we are, right? That means they're more pliable than the old established families, if only because ambition will drives them blind. It's up to you, father. Do you want to stay safe or would you like to move up in the world even more?"

Satoru raised his eyebrows in surprise. "You are… truly your mother's daughter," he said in wonderment. "But yes, I think it's possible to arrange a meeting. Kuon-san sounded oddly desperate, so he might be more willing than usual. I wonder if they're starting to have financial troubles," he added thoughtfully.

"It's possible," she agreed with a smile, glad that was out of the way for now. Hopefully she wouldn't need to use her trump card, which relied heavily on how much the other family valued them. Dealing with yakuza was always risky business, but the profits to be gained were too much for her to ignore. She wanted the world to realize that they were wrong for shunning him in the past. She would help make him one of the most powerful men in economic history. After all, what use was her gift if she didn't utilize it to her family's needs?

Her father suddenly smiled ruefully. "Ah, needless to say, I'd be grateful if you didn't tell your mother about this. I'm a delicate man, and I doubt I can withstand whatever it is she'll undoubtedly want to throw at me. I can't stop you, of course, but…" He spread his hands helplessly with a comical look on his face.

Mihoko giggled. "Yes, father. I understand. Would you like me to stay to meet Matsuri Corporation?"

He shook his head. "No, that's all right. I don't want to keep you from enjoying this beautiful day." Satoru gestured at the outside world behind him, which could be seen through a few panels of floor-to-ceiling glass. "I'm sorry to wake you up so early and make you get dressed just to talk with me alone like this," he apologized sincerely.

Mihoko smiled as she stood up and bowed. "No, it's always a pleasure to help you, father."

"Thank you again for today. I'll see you later this week."

* * *

The two girls were studying together in silence on the dining table, occasionally snacking on Masuyo's homemade cookies.

Masuyo frowned at their hunched over forms. "You know, I thought that having a friend over would make this house more exciting, but you two are as silent as a grave. Do you do nothing but study?"

Naoko looked up at her, straightening her drooping glasses. "No, ma'am. I also read and… read," she repeated lamely.

Mihoko giggled as her mother sighed.

"Not to be rude, Fukuji-san, but isn't this a good thing? We don't go out and cause trouble for anyone, and our grades are in no danger of dropping." The bespectacled girl rested her chin on her palm.

Masuyo rubbed the bridge of her nose. "I'm complaining _precisely_ because your grades are in no danger of dropping. You two are easily at the top of your year, yet you still continue to study as if your lives depended on it. If this keeps up, I'll have to force you out of the house until you come back sufficiently tired from having too much fun."

"You wouldn't really do that, would you mother?" Mihoko asked worriedly.

At the woman's raised eyebrow the two girls sighed and closed their books in unison. She nodded approvingly. "That's better. Now go and do something out of the house. Your father left some money above the television just for you two to spend on yourselves. No, don't argue with me," she added warningly at their almost simultaneous efforts to protest. "Just go."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Yes, mother."

* * *

Naoko groaned as they shut the door behind them. "Now what are we supposed to do? I guess the library is one place we can go to, but it's bound to be crammed with seniors like us. I hate being in crowded places."

Mihoko shrugged unhelpfully. "Well, mother did force us to take the money. We could go… shopping?"

"For what?" Naoko blinked. "Books? I can't carry that many by myself."

The blonde giggled at her friend's typical response. "That's true. Why don't we go get some ice cream and think of what to do while we eat?"

"Sounds good, captain!" Naoko mock-saluted, her braids whipping out behind her.

"I wonder how Kana-chan and the rest of the club are doing." Mihoko frowned thoughtfully at the reminder.

The braided girl stretched her arms overhead carelessly. "Who knows? Why don't you try calling them and see? But I guess if it's you, you wouldn't be happy unless you called _everyone_ and talked with each of them for at least an hour. It's probably better if you didn't, come to think of it."

The captain pouted slightly. "That was uncharitable of you, Naoko-san."

"'Uncharitable', was it? What about you? It's been two years and all I get from you is –san, -san, -san. I'd like to think we're better friends than that," she pointed out seriously.

"Ah, you have a point there…" Mihoko trailed off into silence, leaving the other girl to look at her worriedly.

"Hey, are you okay? I was just curious since you always seem so formal with everyone. You don't need to take me seriously if you don't want to."

She smiled. "I'm fine, thank you." A pause. "Maybe."

Her friend was thoroughly confused at this point. "Huh? If you want to say something, I'll listen."

"Have you ever wanted to be perfect, Naoko-san?" Mihoko asked suddenly.

She blinked. "Sometimes, but then I realized how unbearable I would be. Perfect people drive you crazy, if they even exist in the first place. I'd rather just be a grumpy bookworm. Then again," she added, "I don't think I could ever pull it off, so I don't even think about it."

The blonde nodded at this. So her friend was the type with low expectations of people, including herself. It seems that everyone had their insecurities, not just her. It made her feel a little better.

"For me…" Mihoko paused, unsure if she wanted to say everything she had been holding back. A little would be fine, she reasoned. A little trust went a long way with Naoko, who usually never took anything at face value. If nothing else, Mihoko would gain a valuable ally when she was older and entrenched in the business world. Naoko was sure to become successful, and she should use that to her advantage.

"For me," she repeated more confidently, "perfection has always been something that I strove for. If I could at least maintain that illusion, things would work out. That's what I believe. Well, believed," she amended. "It's not that I was trying to distance myself from you, Naoko-san. I just… didn't want to intrude into your life more than necessary."

There. A little bit of truth mixed in with the lies always worked well. It wasn't as if she was trying to purposefully mislead the girl, but her feelings and motivations were her own. She couldn't expect anyone to understand them, much less sympathize with her. Humans were fickle beings. It is better to love than be reliant on love, much like how one survives better with smiles than frowns. It wasn't precisely a mask that she wore, as she did care about people, but she couldn't trust herself to be strong enough to trust them.

Mihoko glanced sideways to see if her friend accepted it. The other girl's sympathetic gaze told her all she needed to know. Even Naoko believed the caricature she had built up around herself. Well, that was to be expected. The two of them rarely talked about abstract things such as emotions, except when referencing a book or, more recently, discussing 'Operation Ueno' (which still made Mihoko blush). Hisa seemed to be the only person who didn't judge her, and for that she was eternally grateful.

"Well, it looks like we've reached the ice cream shop," Mihoko announced cheerily, changing the subject.

"That we have," Naoko agreed, picking up her friend's cue to move on. "I wonder if they have mint chocolate? It's so hard to find that flavor these days. My siblings always tease me about it, saying it was weird for me to like a flavor that tastes like toothpaste and chocolate. You don't agree with them, do you?" She asked in pleading exaggeration.

The blonde giggled, shaking her head. "No, not at all. It's perfectly refreshing for a hot summer day."

The braided girl's eyes lit up excitedly. "Isn't it?! Quick, let's get some before we melt!"

Mihoko felt her hand being grabbed before she was dragged along into the cold shop, which smelled faintly of sugar and cream. The hand that gripped her own was similar to that of Hisa's, but also different. It was warm and slick with the sweat of spending time under the hot summer sun, yet also smooth and slightly bony from the daily activities of a bookworm who rarely noticed what she ate. It contrasted sharply with the cold air around them inside the shop. As Naoko placed her order, Mihoko wondered absentmindedly how Hisa's hand would feel in this same situation. Warm and slightly callused, just like the other day, with strands of muscle flexing underneath her skin in reaction to the cold. She felt her face grow hot as her mind started to wander from that point.

"Mihoko?" Naoko's worried voice cut through her imagination forcefully.

"Y-Yes?" She responded hazily.

"Are you okay?" Her friend glanced pointedly at their joined hands, where Mihoko was unconsciously brushing her thumb over the other girl's skin.

She let go of Naoko's hand in mortified horror, scarcely believing that she had imagined Hisa in her place and lost touch with reality for a moment. Mihoko stuttered out apologies, which never seemed to end.

Her friend brushed them away casually."It's fine. I know you had someone else on your mind. Just try not to make it a habit, okay? People might think you're into _me_. I'd be flattered, of course, but I'd really just prefer to stay with my books." Naoko patted Mihoko's head gently.

The blonde groaned in further embarrassment. "That's too cruel of you, Naoko-san."

"Right, right. Just place your order and we can go window shopping, or something. Better yet, why don't we visit that arrogant friend of yours? I'd like to see what kind of place she lives in, with the way she struts around like she owned the ground we all walk on."

"Ueno-san's not like that at all!" Mihoko defended her crush. Her love? No, no, it wasn't that deep. She turned to one of the shop's employees. "I'll have a small vanilla ice cream, please."

Her friend sighed. "Vanilla is so _you_. Do something exciting for once. Hey," she called to the same employee. "She's changed her mind. Can you please make that an extra large summer sundae combo?"

Mihoko's eyes widened. "Naoko-san! You can't be serious! I can't-!" Naoko easily covered her friend's mouth with a hand.

The young man raised his eyebrows. "Are you sure, miss? That's pretty big for one person to eat by herself."

"I'm sure." She smiled brilliantly at him and he blushed, going back to work. Naoko promptly let go of Mihoko after that.

The blonde had to put in extra effort not to glare at her friend. A pout managed to make its way onto her face, however. "Really, Naoko-san, that was excessive," she said reprovingly.

"No," the other girl corrected, "it was fun. You'll thank me when that girl finds it cute that you've gained weight."

"Never mind that," Mihoko said with a light blush. "Is that the real reason you ordered such a big dish for me?"

"Of course not," Naoko said blithely. "The fact that you're easily the prettiest girl in Kazekoshi has nothing to do with my wanting to make you fat. It's all for the sake of Operation Ueno."

"Naoko-san!"

"I'm telling it like it is," she assured the blonde. "Really, it's too late for you to back out of this now. I'm just doing my honor-bound duty as your friend."

"I really don't think friends are supposed to do things like this," Mihoko said with a heavy dose of doubt.

"What are you talking about? Of course they are. I can lend you a few books where it clearly states that this is how friendships work," Naoko said matter-of-factly.

She stared at her friend in alarm. "I sincerely hope you are joking about that. You really don't believe those books, do you?"

The bespectacled girl shrugged helplessly and adjusted her glasses. "What can I say? Books are books."

"That's not an answer Naoko-san…"

"You doubt me?" Naoko looked at her in mock-surprise. "I'm hurt, Mihoko-chan. After all the times I've read you stories to help you sleep, played house with you, and even changed your diapers! This blatant lack of trust cuts at me deeply," she announced theatrically.

A corner of Mihoko's mouth twitched upwards. "What are you talking about? We're exactly the same age!"

"I was extraordinarily gifted even then, you know," Naoko explained patiently.

"I don't even know what to say anymore," Mihoko responded helplessly, letting herself smile in amusement.

"Here you go, ladies. Please enjoy." The employee placed their orders on the countertop and Mihoko paid him.

Mihoko took her sundae doubtfully, eyeing the many scoops of ice cream, the syrup, the hot chocolate fudge, and the sprinkles warily. Could she seriously eat all of this? And while walking at the same time?

She noticed that Naoko had yet to pick up her cup of mint chocolate ice cream and she realized an easy solution to her predicament. Quickly the blonde returned her Sunday to the countertop and swiped her friend's order instead.

"Hey! Just what do you think you're doing with that?"

"Eating my ice cream," she said with an innocent smile. Mihoko took a small bite just to emphasize her point.

"B-But that's _mine_!" Naoko whined uncharacteristically.

The blonde smirked inside. So even Naoko could act like this. Well, a little bit of revenge wouldn't hurt anyone.

She raised an eyebrow. "I distinctly remember paying for both of them, so I don't see how any of this is yours to begin with. But I'm a generous person. I'll let you have the other one."

"That's not even your own money; it's your father's. We were both there when your mother said we should use it together. Come on, be reasonable!" She pleaded, not wanting to get stuck eating something that was easily bigger than her head.

"_I'm just doing my honor-bound duty as your friend_," Mihoko quoted pithily, turning away to skip towards the exit cheerily. Oh, victory had never felt so _good_.

She heard a frustrated groan behind her and felt rather than heard angry footsteps catch up to her.

"_You!_ This isn't over. You haven't won at _all_. I will finish this," Naoko declared, "_alone_. And I will wipe that smug smirk off of your face."

"My, my," Mihoko said lightly. "Smirking is such an unseemly expression. I wouldn't do that to my dear, _honor-bound_ friend, would I?"

"You would!" She pointed an accusing finger at the blonde, balancing the sundae with her other hand. "You already are! _On the inside!_"

Mihoko stared at her, and then suddenly held a hand to her mouth to keep herself from laughing. "I can't believe Naoko-san just said that out loud."

Naoko blinked. "I… I can't believe I did, either." She started to chuckle.

Soon both girls were laughing out loud outside the ice cream shop, holding themselves up against the wall of the building.

"You've really changed," Naoko noted once they had both calmed down.

Mihoko looked at her curiously. "How so?"

"You're more relaxed, and you don't get upset as easily anymore. It's a good change, I think," she said thoughtfully.

"O-Oh…" The blonde hadn't noticed it at all. It was true that she had been a little happier lately, but she didn't think anything had changed that noticeably.

The other girl laughed suddenly, shaking her head. "It's that girl, isn't it? Takei? I really didn't expect you to fall for that kind of person. She's so infuriatingly smug that it's hard for me to react calmly." She paused for a moment for admitting, "Well, maybe I'm just seeing a little bit of my family in her, and maybe she only acts that way because she likes to get under people's skin. She does look like the type who likes to tease people, and you're definitely too easy to tease for her to resist. I think you have a chance, because it doesn't look like she'll let go of you anytime soon. She speaks of you with interest, you know, but it's hard to tell what that means. Well, don't give up."

Naoko's quiet but supportive _ganbare_, as well as the speech that accompanied it, caused that beast called 'hope' inside of her heart to grow and surge against her ribcage painfully. Mihoko smiled slightly and thanked her. Was it really all right for her to continue on like this? One moment wanting more than she had, and the next ready to throw a possible future away to focus on her plan from her childhood… it was maddening. But maybe this was what friendship was about. To rush towards an uncertain future together with people who will support you… she had only ever felt that way during team mahjong matches. Well, only time would tell what she would eventually choose, but for now she was holding that _possible_ future under consideration.

Suddenly she felt a heavy weight in her hands and realized her ice cream had been switched back to the monster-sized sundae. She turned towards Naoko, who stuck a victorious tongue out at her.

"What, you didn't think it was over, did you? I told you I would win."

"B-But I've already eaten from that! Isn't that an in-indirect k-k-kiss?" She asked worriedly.

Her friend snorted. "You shared a meal with Takei, and you're worried about an indirect kiss from ice cream? I think you need to fix your priorities." She cemented her point by eating the last spoonful of the light green goo. At the blonde's forlorn look at her own ice cream, the bespectacled girl took pity on her and scooped as much as she could into her now-empty container.

"There. Now we're even," Naoko declared.

Mihoko furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, "…From what?"

"Hey, don't look at me like that. I'm doing you a favor. A favor!" She repeated emphatically. "You should be grateful."

"I wonder about that…" Mihoko said doubtfully. She dug in and was pleasantly surprised to find that it went down easily, being lighter than it looked.

"Where does Takei live, by the way?" Naoko asked curiously.

"Around this corner," she answered. They had been walking as they talked. She silently prayed that the summer sun would help burn away some of the calories from the sundae.

"Hm? I don't see anything, just one mini-mansion that takes up most of the street. I can't see much on the other end, though."

Mihoko giggled. "That _is_ her house. The mansion, I mean."

Naoko whistled. "Well, well… No wonder. Let's go visit!" She dragged her friend, once again, to their next destination. Mihoko's free will wasn't even considered.

The blonde rang the doorbell nervously.

"Takei residence. Please state your business."

Mihoko blinked. Did this double as an intercom? Maybe she should let Naoko take care of this… but the other girl was nudging her insistently to say something. She sighed. Hopefully nothing would break.

"Ah, h-hello? This is Mihoko Fukuji. I was wondering if H-H-H-"

"Ojou-sama is not home presently," the female voice cut her off. She assumed the woman recognized her from her phone call, much to her own embarrassment. "Shall I inform her of your visit when she returns?"

"N-No, that's all right," she said hurriedly.

"Have a good day."

The two girls looked at each other.

"That was the maid, huh? Sounds a little scary," Naoko commented.

"I don't know much about her," Mihoko admitted.

"But still, I wonder where she went? Oh well. She'll probably call you when she gets back, anyway. That type of person is easily bored."

"Naoko-san, you really shouldn-" Mihoko began.

"Yes, yes," she agreed hastily. "Anyway, let's head back. I think this should be enough outdoor activity to please your mother."

The blonde smiled at that. "I agree."


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I don't own BMW (although I do know someone who owns _**a**_ BMW – they're quite nice).

* * *

The national tournament was coming up at the end of the month and Hisa debated whether to hold another training camp one week before. It was true that the team had improved immensely, with no small help from the other schools at the combined training camp, but more practice couldn't hurt. More than anything, though, Hisa wanted her team to be able to adapt under unusual conditions. She had no doubt that there were more than just a few players who were 'loved by the tiles' like Saki and Koromo, not including Teru Miyanaga herself. With that in mind, she wanted to at least prepare her team mentally for that kind of pressure. Although, she mused, she doubted that Saki would ever feel pressure unless her _kans_ were blocked indefinitely.

Yuuki in particular would need more training, as well as Mako. The first year's concentration had improved, but she was still a long way off from becoming national-level. Hisa remembered that there was a program that allowed someone to calculate how much a random hand was worth. Maybe she could convince the girl to start doing a few sets of those daily, starting this week. Mako herself wasn't a bad player, but she relied too much on her memory. She was inflexible and expected the other players to react the same way that middle-aged men did during games. Her photographic memory was both a blessing and a curse.

Maybe she could bully Fujita into helping her again. Mako would benefit from an intense training session between Fujita, Saki, and herself, as all three of them had unusual playing styles. Nodoka wouldn't be of any help to the other girl at all, as she played conservatively, which was how most of the men at Mako's grandfather's café played.

There was so much work to do!

Hisa let herself fall on her bed with a soft _thump_. She flipped open her mobile, starting to scroll through the list of names for Mako's when her door was opened slightly. She glanced in its direction.

"Ojou-sama, goshujin-sama wishes to speak with you," Haru informed her through the gap.

"All right, I'll be right there," she responded, dropping her mobile on the bed as she stood up.

Hisa stretched her arms casually as she walked. She wondered what her father wanted to say to her this time. She had already called Hitoshi about the wedding date and she had studied over the break. The redhead couldn't recall doing anything particularly irresponsible lately. She knew from years of experimenting just how far she could go before she was severely punished, or even lightly lectured. It had been a fun childhood. She grinned at the memories.

She slid open the door halfway and stuck a head inside. "You wanted to see me, father?"

"Yes, yes," he nodded. "Come in. It's unnerving speaking to a floating head."

Hisa grinned at that, as she had purposefully done that to provoke a reaction from him. She walked inside the room and closed the door firmly. Her father was looking over documents again with a calculator on the table, from which she casually sat across.

She tried to see if sitting cross-legged would annoy him today, and was satisfied when he merely raised a bushy eyebrow at her manly position. Girls rarely ever sat that way, choosing rather to sit on their knees, resting back on their heels. To be honest, she was just feeling particularly lazy at the moment.

"In any case," Daichi said, putting down the documents to focus on her, "I received a call today from Hitoshi-kun. He's eager for your visit, so he's sending a car to pick you up today. I tried to dissuade him," he added, noting the surprised look on her face, "but he seemed particularly earnest. It would be especially rude to refuse him at this point."

Hisa blinked. "I see. When will I be leaving?"

"In under an hour," he replied shortly.

She nearly slammed her hand on the table in outrage, but managed to restrain her response to a mere strangled, "What?"

"I thought you'd like to know," he replied wryly, then added, "You might want to start packing. He also mentioned that he'd provide clothes for you if you didn't bring any."

But Hisa was already on her way to her room at his last words. Really, she knew that she inherited her father's penchant for teasing people, but this was just too much. Hitoshi wasn't much better, either. Just what was he trying to imply, saying that she wouldn't need to worry about clothes?

No, calm down. There was no need to read too deeply into the situation. She knew her father wouldn't let her go if he didn't trust the man she was visiting. But still, under an hour? Well, it wasn't as if she would have packed much even if she had more time to prepare. All she needed was her mobile and her laptop. Hisa would have considered bringing a book or two, except that she became nauseous whenever she read on a moving vehicle, and the drive would most certainly be long. At least she'd have a chance to call Mako during the drive.

Upon returning to her room, she was pleasantly surprised to find Haru waiting for her with her messenger bag already prepared.

"Thank you," she said gratefully.

"I've also taken the liberty of placing your mother's gift inside, as well as laid out possible clothes you may want to wear on the bed," Haru explained. She added unhelpfully, "Although with the way you've been eating, I can't be certain that they'll still fit."

"There's nothing wrong with growing," Hisa replied patiently. "I'm just eating to compensate for it."

"Somehow, I doubt you're supposed to be growing in that direction," the maid said wryly.

Hisa stepped back in mock-surprise. "You've been peeking on me, Haru-san? Really, I knew you were a little naughty, but not to that extent!"

Haru sighed. "Please don't flatter yourself, ojou-sama. Even if I were interested in that sort of thing, you'd be the last person I'd look at."

"Well, it's your loss," she replied flippantly, starting to change into a pair of jeans and a fashionable but casual top.

The other woman had already turned to face the wall, waiting for Hisa to finish so that she could work on her hair. She had tried to help her dress, back when she was first hired, but the girl was insistent on doing it herself and resisted every attempt with a smile and a joke. Haru had learned early on to let the girl do as she wished. There wasn't anyone who had the heart to truly stop her, after all. It was hard to refuse someone who was always cheerfully confident.

"Shall we put your hair up today, ojou-sama?" She asked.

Hisa frowned slightly then shook her head once. "No. I don't want to give the impression that I'm trying too hard to impress him. If we just make it wavier, I think it'll be fine."

"Playing hard to get? That sounds like you."

The redhead smirked. "If that was my intent, I'd never be so obvious about it."

Haru nodded compliantly. "As ojou-sama says." Maybe too compliantly, Hisa noted with amusement.

A chime was heard underneath the folds of the maid's kimono, which caused both of them to stare in its direction.

"I believe that would be the driver at the front door," the woman commented.

Hisa blinked. "You're like a walking doorbell, aren't you?"

"Please don't compare me to such mundane things, ojou-sama."

"I say it like it is," she replied cheekily.

"It looks like we've finished just in time, however. Your bag, ojou-sama."

Haru handed the girl her bag, which she took gingerly.

"Well, I'm off. If you hear news of my death, you'll know where to find my body," she joked.

"Your sense of humor is as inappropriate as ever, ojou-sama," the maid replied flatly. She bowed from the doorway. "Please take care. I shall inform goshujin-sama and Rin-sama that you have left."

"Thanks, and please do. See ya," she waved as she entered the car. The stone-faced driver had been holding the door of the black BMW silently until then, and he shut it firmly but gently once she was inside. He bowed shortly to Haru before entering the driver's seat.

As she heard the engine start quietly, Hisa took out her mobile. Mako should be home from her grandfather's café by now. It had been a while since she had contacted the other girl, if only because the stream of injured bodies that stopped by her house had been steadily increasing and she had been busy playing nurse along with Haru. It was becoming ridiculous. Just what was the Abe-gumi doing? She resolved to ask Hitoshi about it later.

Hisa shook her head and put it out of her mind, scrolling down to Mako's name once again. She hit the _Call_ button and held it up to her ear. The other end picked up almost immediately.

"_Hello, this is Mako speaking."_

"What, is that any way to greet your sempai?" She asked teasingly.

"_Oh! Hey, buchou. I didn't check the ID. What's up?"_

"Nothing, really," she said easily. "I just had some extra time to kill and thought I'd call you."

"_I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be offended or pleased to hear that,"_ the other girl replied, amusement clear in her voice. _"I think I know what you're planning, though. When are you planning to have the training camp?"_

Hisa laughed, surprised that the other girl knew her so well. "Sometime next week, I think. I was also considering giving our little underclassman more calculating exercises. We'll need more tricks up our sleeves if we want to surprise the other teams at the nationals. Yumi-san's reference book was immensely helpful, but there's no guarantee that they won't have similar records on us."

"_I see, I see,"_ Mako replied. Hisa could almost see her adjusting her glasses thoughtfully. _"Man, I was really surprised when she did that. Even our own records weren't that detailed, and I know how obsessive you can get about mahjong."_

"Maybe," she agreed readily, "but it's not like I put much stock in numbers. There are a lot of things that happen beyond what's recorded."

"_That's true. So what are you planning for me? You've been focusing on our first years during our last few training camps because it was clear they needed more help than I did. I'm getting the feeling you'll want to pull out the big guns this time, and I don't think I'll be able to sit on the sidelines."_

The Kiyosumi leader laughed at that. "You don't want to know; trust me. I'll make sure you improve, even if it takes liters of tears and blood to pull it out of you."

The other girl groaned from the other end. _"I trust you enough to believe you know what you're doing, but do you really have to be such a demon about it? I'm starting to think I might not make out of it alive. Maybe I shouldn't come."_

"Now, now," Hisa said kindly, "what would I do without my biggest source of inspiration there to support me? I might crumble and fall into a million pieces without you there."

She heard a defeated sigh through the phone and smirked. Her friend's false threat had been extinguished. _"You're saying embarrassing things again…"_

"Glad to have you onboard, comrade Mako. Anyway, are you doing anything this weekend? I found a mahjong parlor that has some interesting people. We could make it a team outing," she suggested excitedly.

"_You know I can't do that,"_ Mako said ruefully._ "Grandfather would be disappointed that I was helping the competition."_

Hisa raised an eyebrow at this. "But I thought you only had one table? That's hardly competition."

"_I know I can always count on you to be honest,"_ her friend said with a laugh. _"Business has been picking up, actually, so we've bought a few more. Grandfather's so happy about it that he's raised the wages for new hirelings. If you need any extra cash, you should stop by for a few hours."_

The redhead grinned ironically at this. She was fairly sure she wouldn't be in need of money any time soon. "Thanks, but I'll pass. I'll be sure to tell the other girls."

"_What about Suga-san?"_

"Oh, that's right." Hisa blinked, wondering how she had forgotten about him. She shrugged. "I guess he could help out with the heavy lifting, right?"

"_That's… You know what? Never mind. I should start to expect this from you. How are things with you, anyway? You sound happy as usual."_

"Thank you, thank you," she replied with mock dignity. "I've been fine. I ran across Mihoko Fukuji last week and we've been hanging out. Did you know she's actually a minor celebrity in her hometown?"

"_Huh, really? Wait, that means you two live in the same area, right? Why haven't you heard of her until now? I know you'd think up a way to blackmail her into playing against you if you had."_

"My family just moved here recently, and I only stay with them over breaks. And did you forget?" She added. "Kazekoshi is a boarding school. I wouldn't have seen her during the school year, anyway."

"_Oh, that's right. So how is that going? She seems like a nice person, from what Yuuki-chan's told us of her."_

Hisa smiled fondly as she thought of the other girl. "She's cute and has far too many buttons to push. Her face is like a rainbow of pinks waiting to be unleashed."

"_Poor girl,"_ Mako said sympathetically.

"Right?" Hisa agreed mistakenly with a nod. "I don't know if I'll be able to push all of those buttons before summer ends."

She heard a snort from the other end. _"Who said I was talking about you? That girl would have to be an absolute saint to be able to take on your merciless attacks."_

"Hey, that's not very fair," the redhead replied defensively. "They're not merciless at all. I'm just helping her loosen up. She's way too serious for her age."

"_And you're too carefree,"_ Mako quipped.

"It makes life interesting. What can I say?" Hisa shrugged reflexively.

"_Anyway,"_ the bespectacled girl continued, ignoring her, _"I have to get going. It's almost time to prepare dinner."_

"All right. I'll call you after I make the reservations at the usual place for our training."

"_Okay. I'll be waiting for it. Bye."_

"Later."

Hisa closed her mobile and stared at its outer LCD screen, which blinked the time up at her. She tossed it a few times experimentally and slid it back into her bag. Judging from the time, she should be arriving at Hitoshi's estate soon. The trees that lined the road were already starting to increase in frequency.

Not long after she thought that, the car slowed gently to a stop. It shifted slightly as the driver's weight left it to open the door for her. She smiled up at him gratefully before exiting the vehicle, slipping her bag around her shoulder.

"This way, ojou-sama," he gestured, leading the way in front of her.

No matter how many times she visited, Hisa could never get used to how beautiful it was. The gravel-lined road that led to a highly ornamental bridge happened to cut through a small bamboo forest. The sunlight bounced off the stalks, casting the area in a strange green glow. As they walked closer to the bridge, she could see the area ahead of them opened up into a lake with an island in the middle, where a large Japanese-style mansion was built. The lake was surrounded by the aforementioned forest, giving the estate a sense of solitude and peace rarely found elsewhere in the busy country of Japan. The sunlight here reflected off of the unmoving water, making it hard to look past it without squinting.

"Ah, my apologies. Would ojou-sama like a pair of sunglasses?" The driver offered in concern.

She shook her head. "No, that's fine. It's a beautiful place. I'd rather view it in all of its glory."

"I understand," he replied shortly.

Hisa hoped that Hotoshi would be the one to greet them at the mansion. She hated dealing with the servants here. They were too subservient and twitchy, scarcely lifting their eyes from the floor to even look ahead of where they walked. She couldn't really blame them, of course. Considering the shady dealings that no doubt often occurred here, one could get killed being employed by the Abe family if they weren't discreet.

It still annoyed her, though, especially since she couldn't make them stop, even just for her. She gave a silent prayer of thanks that her family's own maid was nothing like that.

"Hisa-chan!" The deep voice that called out definitely belonged to Hitoshi. She scanned the mansion in front of her, trying to pinpoint where it came from.

"Over here! Down to your left!"

Hisa blinked as she looked in that direction, a small rowboat slowly drifting from underneath the bridge that led to the mansion. Her fiance's body appeared hunched over what looked like a fishing pole.

"Are you… _fishing_?" She asked him incredulously. "Do you even _have_ fish here?"

"We do," he affirmed cheerfully. "Father recently bought a few dozen from one of the fishing farms in the countryside. Would you like to join me?"

She noted the white tank top he wore, which partially hid the yakuza tattoo that covered his back, the pale cream bucket hat he wore, and the box of tackle bait next to him. He looked absolutely ridiculous, especially since the absurd amount of muscles that covered his frame made it seem as if he was in danger of snapping the fishing pole in half. It looked like a toothpick in his hands.

Hisa grinned and shrugged to herself. Why not? It had been a while since she had done something this inane.

Hitoshi flushed red as she started to take off her top, revealing a black tank top. The driver wordlessly took it from her, and also held her bag for her.

"Wh-What are you doing?!" He asked frantically, forcing his eyes to the water.

"Taking off my shirt. I don't want it to smell like fish later." She thanked the driver and instructed him to take her things to her designated guest room. As he left, she jumped down into the boat gracefully, only barely making it rock. Hitsohi stared at her in barely contained amazement, his cheeks still faintly pink.

Hisa flicked his forehead. "Stop looking at me like that. I'm not naked, and it's not like you've never seen a girl's bare arms before."

"Ah, right." He regained control of his senses and asked her curiously, "Have you ever done this before?"

"What, take my shirt off in front of a man? I don't know if I want to marry someone who thinks such lewd things of his fiancé…" she trailed off pointedly.

"N-No! I meant about fishing." He surged to his feet in his haste to reassure her. The boat rocked even more at the weight displacement and he spread his legs to control it.

She smiled confidently, unfazed by the movement. "I haven't."

"All right." Hitoshi sat down, indicating that she should do the same. "Here's what you do."

As he explained to her how to fish using basic equipment, she watched the careful movements of his fingers, noting how gently he held the fragile bait and placed it carefully on the hook. She could see the big hands holding onto a pen during class and writing down notes, or typing away furiously at a keyboard, surprisingly dexterous despite their unwieldy size. Hisa wondered if he was just as precise when he killed people or extorted money from them. _Had_ he ever killed anyone? She couldn't bring herself to ask that from a man with such gentle eyes.

"Hey, are you listening to me?" He asked with a nudge of his boot. A sigh. "I knew it. I forced you here at a time when you usually took your daily nap, didn't I?"

"I don't take naps during the summer. What blasphemy are you talking about?" She shoved him playfully, smirking when he scrambled to not fall off the boat. She continued after he regained his balance. "I'm still annoyed you went behind my back and did that, by the way. Why didn't you just call me?"

"I heard you liked surprises," he replied easily, no trace of guilt apparent on his unlined face.

She took a hold of one of his sideburns and pulled on it, feeling gratified by the pained expression and the small cries of protest he was making.

"Males who wish to call themselves men are not allowed to make such carefree remarks," she stated mock-seriously.

"My sincerest apologies, oh wonderful one! This lowly cretin knew not what he had done. Please forgive him!"

Hisa let go of the rough hair promptly, and he rubbed it with a wince. "Your groveling could use some work, but it was satisfactory."

"I'm glad I have your approval," he said wryly. Hitoshi changed the subject. "Do you want to try it this time? I've only got one pole, but it's not like we're under any time constraints. If we catch anything, our cook said he'd use it for tonight's dinner."

She looked at him curiously. "And if we don't?"

"Then we have sushi," he said plainly, as if it were obvious.

Hisa wanted to sigh. He probably had sushi everyday when he wasn't at university. What a fortunate guy.

She took the proffered pole and threw it out into the lake, the float on the fishing wire bobbing gently on the tiny waves that marred the water's surface.

"This is where we have philosophical talks like old men, right?" Hitoshi asked teasingly.

"No," Hisa disagreed with a rueful smile. "This is where I ask what the hell is going on with the Abe-gumi. Our people have been targeted ever since summer started, and I want to know if you're even doing anything about it."

"Ah…" He ran a nervous hand through his messy black hair, causing his hat to fall off, which landed inside the boat. "Don't look at me like that, Hisa-chan. We're trying to find out who's behind these attacks, but we're not having much luck. Our sources seem reluctant to give out any information at all, and our allies are having similar problems, so we can't expect much help from them."

She frowned thoughtfully. "How are you treating the shopping districts?"

"What?" He looked puzzled by the abrupt question but answered it after facing her determined expression. "All right, I suppose. We don't bother the ones that pay our protection fees, but we rough up the ones who don't. Nothing unusual about that, really."

"Well, have you thought about giving them benefits for cooperating with you? I'm not talking about just leaving them alone. These people need to know that the current group they're supporting is better than any rival yakuza gangs. Otherwise they'll be reluctant to help you when times get rough, like now. At worst, they might even defect to the enemy. It's always good to have the common man on your side."

"Huh." He looked thoughtful for a moment. "You have a point there. I'll talk about it with father." He added, "We've also been trying to set up meetings with the neighboring groups for alliances, but they're really hesitant about discussing it. I get the feeling that this group might be a foreign entity. I mean, we would have heard about them if they were local and holding this much capital."

"That's possible." Hisa nodded. "It'll be hard to confirm that without any information, though. Have you contacted any businesses?"

"Only recently," he admitted. "I know what you're trying to say, but it's a little more difficult than that. This group might be getting funding from Japanese corporations, but it's hard to find out which. We're still a new group, so a lot of those businesses are wary of us. Why would they want connections with us when there's a chance that we might fall apart within the next few years?"

"I see. Well, work hard. I'm sure we'll be fine if we keep at it," she said supportively.

He smiled widely. "Of course. With you by my side, how can we fail? Don't tell father about any of this, of course. You know how he feels about women getting involved," he added warningly, eyes sympathetic.

"Don't worry about it," she replied breezily. Hisa knew he would like to give her credit for her valuable advice, but they both knew the head of the Abe-gumi wouldn't listen to a woman at all.

The float bounced hard once, twice, and then went under. Hisa felt the tug on her pole and she grounded her feet, preparing to pull back hard. Once she felt that the fish on the other end had been caught, she did just that. The fish she brought up at the end of the fishing line was flapping excitedly as she laid it down inside the boat to extract the hook.

"Do you want me to take it out for you?" Hitoshi asked kindly.

Hisa smirked at him in response and he backed off accordingly. She carefully took the hook out; offering a silent apology to the fish for the pain it had to endure just for their recreational enjoyment. Then she tossed it inside the bucket that already held two other big fish. She was surprised to find them there. Maybe Hitoshi wasn't just a friendly musclehead, after all.

"That wasn't bad," she decided after she wiped her hands on a rag. "But I think I'd rather just wait for my food to be brought to me."

Hitoshi laughed. "You would. Tell me," he leaned in conspiratorially, "are you good at everything you do? I'd hate to lose out to my fiancé in everything. It wouldn't be very manly, you know."

"If I answered that honestly, you'd probably cry. I don't think it would be very ladylike of me to completely emasculate you," she joked in the same vein as his previous sentence.

"How generous of you," he responded dryly. Hitoshi stood up and stretched. "I think that's all we need for tonight. Let's get back so our cook will have enough time to prepare it."

He rowed them towards the island, where they unloaded at a small dock that wasn't there the last time she visited. Hitoshi tied the boat up to prevent it from drifting away.

"I'll head to the kitchens with this," he gestured at the bucket, "and I'll meet you later at dinner. It'll give you a chance to freshen up. I also found a few kimonos the other day in the city. I thought you might enjoy them, so they should be in your room by now. I'm fairly sure the measurements were correct." He added hastily at her raised eyebrow, "Haru-san helped me out with that, so don't think I'm a pervert or anything!"

"If you say so," she smiled.

As she walked towards her usual room, she met Hitoshi's father on the fenced wooden walkway that overlooked the lake. She bowed towards him and he returned it, albeit less deeply.

"Good day, Hisa-san. You've grown," he said plainly.

"Thank you, Abe-sama." Hisa bit back the words, _and you haven't_. He was a short, but shrewd man. He might be sexist, but he also knew how to be an effective leader. It didn't make him any more likable, she decided.

"I'll look forwards to the dinner you've caught for us. It's fitting for a woman to do so, after all." He folded his arms inside his kimono and walked away, leaving Hisa to nurse over her injured dignity.

There were some things that even she knew not to say, no matter how much she wanted to.

The kimonos she found in her room, however, put all thoughts of the unpleasant man out of her head. They were of various bright colors and eye-catching patterns. She had dreamed of wearing kimonos like these ever since she was a child. Hitoshi really had an eye for these things, and she was grateful for it at times like this.

A hesitant knock brought her attention to the door, where a servant was kneeling on the floor, eyes downcast.

"Speak," she said shortly. Normally she would have been kind and polite, but that only served to make them even more nervous. She gave an inward sigh.

"Takei-sama, your bath is ready. Would you like me to accompany you to wash your back?"

"No, that's unnecessary. I'll take it alone." She strode towards her designated bathroom without a glance at the servant, wishing she could do something to change how the whole master-servant dynamic worked in the Abe household. Well, once Hitoshi became the clan leader, things would definitely change, she reminded herself.


	12. Chapter 12

Warning: Mahjong in this chapter. I think it's easier to understand than in previous chapters, though.

Thank you very much for reading, and especially for reviewing!

* * *

"_Itadakimasu."_

The three people at the table put their hands together, chorusing the phrase, before eating.

"The kimono looks good on you," Hitoshi remarked with a smile.

"Thank you," Hisa replied, keeping her eyes downcast on her food. She was mindful of at least keeping up the appearance of a proper Japanese lady. Her meal would be half finished by now if that wasn't the case. She sighed inwardly for the second time that day.

She glanced at the head of the table discretely. He was sure to take any chance to criticize her. Then again, it was just as likely that he was purposely ignoring her.

"Has the wedding date been decided?" Katashi Abe asked of his son, who looked startled to have been addressed so suddenly.

"Ah, yeah," Hitoshi responded reflexively before giving his explanation. "We agreed that we'd have it the day after she graduates from university. We can't really give an exact date yet because we're not sure which university she'll be attending just yet, since their semesters all end at different times."

With every 'we' that spilled forth from Hitoshi, Katashi's frown grew incrementally. "You're letting a woman decide that with you on equal footing?"

His son smiled nervously. "There's nothing wrong with that, right? I mean," He reasoned calmly, "she's my woman. I have the right to decide how she acts towards me."

Hitoshi glanced at Hisa quickly to see if she took him seriously. Her brief nod showed that she hadn't, and he gave a silent sigh of relief.

Katashi took him at his word, however, which was the intent. "Well, a woman is only a woman. She shouldn't affect you much after the first week of marriage, if at all."

Hisa had to hold in a scoff. If only he knew just how much of the Abe-gumi's recent successes had been the cause of her own ideas. He was definitely letting his prejudices blind him from the truth. After all, didn't he find it odd that Hitoshi suddenly became a capable leader after he proposed to her? Then again, Katashi might have shrugged it off as one of university's influences. Hitoshi had started college a year before she entered high school.

At that point she made a decision. If she couldn't find a way out of this marriage, then the least she could do was prove to him that she wasn't just a woman.

"As you say, father," Hitoshi agreed amiably. He changed the subject. "University has been a little hectic lately. They're expecting us to work in groups and present a business model and all of the necessary details at the end of term. It's an interesting project when everyone in my group is trying to be the leader."

Hisa smiled slightly at that. Her grin would be too masculine in this situation. "So you're just sitting back and working on it yourself until the crossfire dies down?"

"A sensible approach," Katashi nodded. He announced shortly, "A few guests will be gambling here tonight. Be sure to entertain them properly, Hitoshi, Hisa-san."

"Yes, father."

"Yes, Abe-sama."

Hisa found it typical that the only time he spoke to her directly was when he needed her to do something.

The rest of the meal was eaten in silence, with barely a compliment to their fishing skills. It felt largely routine to Hisa, and she wondered if this was how a robot felt, mechanically moving food to its mouth while agreeing readily to whatever was said. How dull.

* * *

"Ahhh," Hisa yawned, stretching her arms upwards as the door to the dining room was slid closed. The head of the Abe-gumi had decided to stay in order to discuss a few matters with his underlings.

Hitoshi looked on in amusement. "What, tired already? I really shouldn't have interrupted your nap today. My apologies."

She shoved him once more and he rubbed his arm painfully. "I'm telling you, that has nothing to do with it. No, it's just that dinner here is always so tense. It's hard to enjoy the food. Where did you buy those fish from, by the way? They were quite good."

He scratched at his stubble thoughtfully. His facial hair grew faster than average and was already starting to show the shadow of a beard. "I'm not sure. I'll have to ask father later. He usually just buys things on a whim, so we didn't really discuss it."

Hisa shook her head and smiled. "You're pretty carefree for a yakuza. Are you sure you're man enough to take over the Abe-gumi? I'd probably feel a little worried if I was one of your underlings."

"Hey, hey!" He protested with a smile. "Have a little more faith in me. I'd like to think that I'm doing just fine. At least, no one's gotten killed yet under my orders."

"Yet," she repeated softly. Hisa crossed her arms inside the sleeves of her kimono. The lake looked especially beautiful tonight, the moon reflecting off of the pristine waters. The wooden walkway that made up the outer rim of the mansion gave the perfect view of it. She contemplated the consequences of being involved with the yakuza the way she was. Anyone who died under Hitoshi's lead was inadvertently dead because of her. Half of what was done under Hitoshi's direction was only possible because Hitoshi himself followed her advice to the letter. She knew it hadn't happened so far, and she was thankful for that, but it would eventually.

Hitoshi frowned at her melancholy tone and stepped towards her, placing a comforting arm around her shoulders. She flinched at the contact and moved a few paces away. Hisa didn't need his sympathy. He was the last person she would ever want comfort from. The sudden rise of resentment and anger that stemmed from this whole situation threatened to break out of her and she had to viciously clamp it down. She should be grateful, right?

The flash of hurt that crossed his eyes didn't go unnoticed by her, but she chose to ignore it. Drawing attention to what just happened would only make things more awkward.

Hisa forced out a smile and drew the folds of her kimono closer to her. "It's getting cold. Why don't we head on to the mahjong room? Our guests wouldn't like to be kept waiting."

Hitoshi blinked at the sudden change of topic. "Oh. Uh, okay."

He rubbed at his stubble again as he lead the way to the room they used for gambling. Did he misread the mood earlier?

"Who's playing tonight?" She asked curiously.

"Two of my father's old friends, me, and one of our regulars," he replied, mentally counting the players. He turned to her. "Did you want to play, instead? I don't think they'll mind, since they'll assume you'll be easy money."

She shook her head. "No, that's fine. I didn't bring much money with me, and certainly not enough to gamble with. I'll just watch."

"I don't mind lending you some. It would be fun to see their faces when they lose to you," he stated with a grin.

Hisa shrugged and smiled in defeat. "Well, I'll only play if they look interesting. Maybe in the second _hanchan_. How long do you think they'll be playing for?"

"Probably only two _hanchans_. It depends on how long it takes for one of them to go broke," he explained readily.

She smirked at hearing that. "Now that sounds like a challenge."

Hitoshi sighed. "It would. To you, anyway. Well, here we are."

He slid open the door gently. Inside the room were two older men in dark colored kimonos and a man who looked to be in his twenties, dressed in a suit. They were gathered around a mahjong table, talking. All three looked up at their entrance.

"Hello, I hope we haven't kept you waiting long," Hitoshi greeted with a welcoming smile.

"Not at all, not at all!" One of the older men responded, his smile revealing a golden tooth. "It's always a pleasure to see you again, Hitoshi-kun."

"Likewise, Ogi-san. How has your wife been doing? Last I heard, she was feeling ill," Hitoshi inquired amicably.

Another older man snorted. "Bah! That woman is as fine as ever. She beat me upside the head the other day just because I lit up a cigarette in their house. What a violent woman. I trust you have no such restrictions here?"

"No, go ahead."

"Sakino-san, my wife wouldn't have done that if you hadn't given her good reason to," Ogi replied carefully.

"What nonsense is this? You're backing up your wife instead of me? I thought we were comrades! Brothers! Fellow crusaders in this battle of the unjust!"

The whole room could only stare at him with amused confusion clear on their faces. It was obvious he was more than a little drunk. Sakino slammed down his empty sake dish as if to emphasize this point.

"I think it best if we began," the younger man suggested helpfully. _Before he passes out from the sake_, his eyes seemed to say.

Hitoshi took a seat across from the Abe-gumi underling, with each of the middle-aged men on his side. He rolled the dice so that they could decide the proper seating and wind positions.

"So, what will the wager be tonight, men?" Hitoshi asked.

Sakino lit up a cigarette and took a long drag. His fingers were surprisingly steady despite the ungainly movements of the rest of his body. "I'm puttin' down a million yen. Anyone got a problem with that?"

"I won't disagree with that," Ogi responded. Then he noticed Hisa behind Hitoshi's large frame. "Wait, what's this? A little lady? And quite a pretty one at that! Why don't you place her on the betting table, Hitoshi-kun? It would make the rest of the evening go by faster, don't you think?"

"Ah, no," Hitoshi disagreed with a frosty smile. "I'm afraid that's my fiancé. There will be no betting on her tonight, or ever."

"Well said, sir," the underling agreed quietly. "If we may begin?"

"Good idea, Kuni-san."

Hisa sat a little off to the side, behind Hitoshi. She had a good view of both his and Sakino's hands, but the other two were a mystery to her. She wasn't expecting much from either Hitoshi or Kuni, as neither were the rep player of the Abe-gumi, but she was interested in seeing if Sakino could back up his large bet. To gamble while one was drunk wasn't uncommon, but to do so while playing a game that required concentration was a little reckless, especially when everyone was familiar with each other. One's little habits became very obvious when alcohol was added.

The game started out slowly, with both Kuni and Ogi taking their time to decide on their discards. Sakino discarded tiles almost the instant he drew them, and Hitoshi neither took too long nor too little time during his turn. Sakino's hand seemed to be coming together, and Kuni looked like he was on the verge of winning, since he had made a few calls of _pon_, leaving part of his hand exposed. Ogi looked frustrated, which meant that his hand wasn't coming together at all, while Hitoshi maintained his calm. Hisa suspected he was only trying to get into avoid throwing out dangerous tiles and wasn't planning on winning this round. He started out with a trash hand, so she wasn't surprised at this tactic.

Then Sakino looked to be in _tenpai_ and didn't declare _riichi_. Hisa wondered if he was waiting for a bigger hand to come along.

On Ogi's next discard, he declared, "Ron! Ittsu, Dora 1. 3,900."

Ogi groaned and the other two looked at Sakino in surprise. Most people would have declared _riichi_, but he didn't? It wasn't something he could pull off twice, since everyone's guard would up now. Hisa grinned. He reminded her a little of Mihoko. She was glad that alcohol hadn't dulled his senses. It would have been a boring game, otherwise.

The rest of the game continued with Hitoshi putting up a strong defense and Sakino preying on Ogi more often than not, with occasional _tsumos_ to steal points from the other players. Kuni one once with a small hand, but it was a regular _tsumo_, which barely put a dent in Sakino's collected points.

The first _hanchan_ ended with Sakino in first place, Kuni in second, Hitoshi in a close third, and Ogi in a _very_ distant last.

"Good game!" Sakino roared, downing another serving of sake. "Let's go for another round. Who's in?"

"Ah, I think I'll pass," Ogi replied dejectedly.

"What if we raised the stakes? If you win, you get everyone's original bettings, and then some," Hitoshi offered.

The greed that entered Ogi's eyes was answer enough and Sakino laughed loudly. "I knew you had it in you, you old dog!"

"If I may make a suggestion?" Hisa interrupted them.

They turned to look at her and she grinned. "Let's triple it, and I'll replace Hitoshi-kun as a player."

"Little lady, are you sure about this?" Ogi asked worriedly. It was unexpected coming from someone who just earlier had plans on doing unnecessary things to her.

"Let her do what she wants. It could be more interesting than playing against Hitoshi-kun. No offense, young man, but you play like an old man." Sakino laughed loudly at his own joke and Hitoshi only smiled ruefully.

The yakuza heir gave up his seat willingly and tried to pat her on the shoulder, which she avoided by holding up a hand to block it. She smirked over her shoulder at him and he nodded in understanding. There was no need for worry when she was at the table.

"Shall we play with the same amount of points from the last game?" She suggested.

Ogi paled at this. "But Sakino-san would have almost twice as many points as you!"

She shrugged lightly. "We're playing for triple the amount, right? Triple," she repeated. "Imagine what you could use that extra money on."

"Is this really all right?" Kuni asked Hitoshi uncertainly. If things went awry, he'd share part of the blame, and Katashi was not someone to be angered.

Hitoshi nodded. "I'll cover for you if anything happens; don't worry."

"That's my line," Hisa remarked with amusement.

Sakino laughed again, his face starting to become ruddy with alcohol. "You're a confident one. Interesting, interesting!"

The first round went by with nothing happening. It was a draw, and only Hisa and Kuni were in _tenpai_, which meant that they each received 1,500 points from the other two players. The next round was more fortunate for Hisa, as her starting hand was in a good position to go for a big pointer, and with Sakino as dealer for this round, it meant that if she _tsumo'd_, he'd have to pay twice as much as the other two players. She counted on that happening and was careful to work her hands around Sakino's discards to avoid being _ron_'_d_. There was no telling if he'd try the same trick he did with the first game, where he didn't declare _riichi_ when he could have.

Hisa finished setting up her hand and declared _riichi_, confident that her discards were ambiguous enough that the other three would start throwing away tiles recklessly, destroying their own hands in order to avoid dealing into her own. However, she had already put herself into _furiten_, which meant that she couldn't win off of someone else's discard and would need to draw her last tile to win. It was dangerous, she knew, especially since this involved Hitoshi's money and everyone trailed behind Sakino's score significantly. Even so, this was the only way she was confident of winning.

A few draws later proved her right. As she picked up her tile, she glanced at it before flipping it into the air.

"Tsumo!"

She revealed the rest of her hand as the remaining tile started to fall back down. Hisa caught the tile on its way down in the palm of her hand, then slammed it face-up next to the rest of her tiles. She smirked.

"Chin Ittsu, Haneman. 12,000."

There was silence at this, the other people in the room scarcely believing that she would put herself in _furiten_ just to guarantee that she'd take points directly from Sakino. The man himself looked impressed and almost even sober for a moment before breaking out into laughter once more.

"Well done, little miss! I hope there's more where that came from, for your sake as well as mine." He downed another serving of sake.

"Thank you," she replied. "I believe I still have a little bit of luck."

"I wouldn't exactly call that luck," Kuni said wryly from her side. "But that was surprising, anyway. I feel bad for the tile."

Hisa shrugged, unbothered by the faint criticism as they pushed in the tiles to the center of the table for the machine to shuffle for them.

Her starting hand this time was a bit of a mess. There were many ways for her to turn this into a winning hand, but with every possibility she knew there was an equal possibility of it failing. She decided to discard tiles in a way that would allow her to adapt depending on which tiles the other three players were discarding. She'd work her hand around their discards once more and wait to see which tiles could be used for her hell wait.

As the game progressed and she saw the tiles she needed being discarded from her left, she was tempted to call _chi_ and open part of her hand. It would make the round go by faster, she knew, but it also made it much easier for Sakino to see what type of hand she was making. He was more observant than he made himself look. She reminded herself to calm down and not worry about the money. It usually made people nervous and easily excitable, much like Ogi himself, who was barely clinging on to his remaining points.

Hisa decided to discard tiles in a pattern similar to Sakino's, finding herself fortunate to draw those tiles in the first place. She hid herself in the flow of the game until her hand came together, at which point she called _riichi_ again and waited for her tile to come from Sakino. He was the only one who would deal into her, she reasoned, as the other two would merely discard what was already on the table without even trying to win.

She scoffed internally at that. Why bother to gamble if you weren't willing to take risks? Only Sakino looked unperturbed at her _riichi_ and continued building his hand. After a few turns, he also declared _riichi_.

Hisa's grin widened and her eyes rose up to meet Sakino's, only to be faced with a similar grin. It looked like this was a race to see who would deal into the other person's hand first. It was completely foolish to declare _riichi_ after someone else did. Doing so meant that there was no way to avoid dealing a risky tile, and you were left to hope that every time you drew, you would either draw your last winning tile, or a safe tile. It was impossible to avoid dealing into the other person's _riichi_. Hisa decided she liked Sakino. His playing style was fitting.

Two turns passed without incident, as the other two players had skillfully managed to continue dealing out safe tiles, protecting their remaining points diligently. On Sakino's turn, he was forced to deal her winning tile. She almost frowned in disappointment. The round was over too soon, and he hadn't even broken a sweat from nervousness. Well, she supposed she could blame the alcohol for that.

"Ron! Hon Ittsu, San Ren Ko, Mangan. 8,000."

And with that, she had almost leveled the playing field. If she won once again with a limit hand, which would pay out a minimum of 8,000, then she would win the game. Of course, that was if she landed a direct hit on Sakino again, just like now. If she _tsumo'd_ or if someone else played into her hand, then the game might end sooner with her in a close second place. It would still be quite an accomplishment if that happened, she knew, especially since Sakino likely had decades of experience over her own measly 12 years, but she wanted to _win_. It would be further proof to Katashi that she wasn't just a pretty face.

The next round was ideal for her, as the position of dealer was passed to her, which meant that any of her winning hands would be worth 50% more. She toyed with the idea of going for a _yakuman_, which would have been worth 32,000 (or 48,000, actually, as she was dealer) but she quickly discarded the thought as she realized that her luck wasn't nearly that great. A regular dealer win would be enough.

Hisa decided to go for a _Toi Toi_ (4 triples and 1 pair) hand, as it wasn't as easy to read from her discards, and she already had three pairs waiting for her in her dealing hand. Alternately, she could try to wait for them to complete themselves from her draws. It was possible, considering her luck when it came to impossible odds.

"Pon!"

She decided not to wait for them to come. Hisa was feeling impatient and didn't want to wait for _riichi_. A quick and dirty _Toi Toi_ would be fine.

Everyone stared at Ogi as he suddenly declared _tsumo_. It looked like no one had expected that to happen, including the man himself. It was only small, though, and Hisa had to pay a trifling 700 points for his 1,500 point hand. She wanted to sigh. What a waste of her turn as dealer. She felt her luck starting to slip away from her.

The next round looked to be the last round, as Hisa had been dealt a hand that was already in _tenpai_. If she was lucky, she would draw the tile she needed and declare a _yakuman tsumo_ win. If she was unlucky, she could still declare _riichi_ and get extra points due to her dealing _tenpai_.

As she drew her tile and glanced at it, it looked like the latter was the case and she discarded what she drew.

"Riichi!"

Sakino laughed. "Little lady, you like keeping us at the edge of our seats, don't you?"

She smiled innocently at him. "Whatever gave you that impression, Sakino-san?"

He was beside himself with chuckles, the alcohol obviously making the joke seem funnier than it was. As a result, he discarded a tile carelessly.

"Ron! Daburii, Ippatsu, Yaku Hai, Mangan. 8,000."

And with that, she won, effectively winning back all of Hitoshi's money with more than a little left over.

"I think… I think I'm done for tonight…" Ogi said weakly, his face pale. There was no doubt he was probably thinking of his wife's reaction when she heard how much he lost tonight.

Kuni was mostly silent except for a quiet 'congratulations' towards Hisa. It didn't matter to him as long as he, Hitoshi, or Hitoshi's replacement (meaning Hisa) won. He wasn't betting using his own money, but rather a loan from Katashi himself just for tonight's game. With that said, he was relieved that things turned out this way, as the best he could do was end up in second place against Sakino's playing.

Sakino himself had already passed out against the wall behind him. Hisa could only shake her head at the scene. She wondered just how much of her wins today had been a direct result of his drinking too much. Well, there was no reason for her to worry about it. She'd only start to lose faith in her own playing abilities, which were rather decent, if she could say so herself.

"Well done," Hitoshi congratulated her as everyone began to leave.

"Thank you. I'll be expecting a percentage of the winnings once they get delivered to your house," she teased lightly.

He smiled at that. "Typical of you to say that, but that's fine. I don't mind."

She raised an eyebrow. "I was joking. You really shouldn't throw money around so casually."

"Do you seriously believe what you are saying? I think Takei-san here needs to look outside one more time and repeat what she just said." He steered her outside to face the lake and the surrounding bamboo forest, ignoring her protests.

"Fine, fine, you're rich," she acceded. "That doesn't mean I'm comfortable with large amounts of money just given to me."

"Yet you're fine with gambling large amounts of money that belong to other people?" He asked her wryly, repeating her words for effect.

Hisa nodded firmly, crossing her arms inside her sleeves once more. "Of course. That's only normal."

Hitoshi sighed at that, unable to think up an appropriate response. He soon gave up and went on a different topic. "Have you seen our new bath? We just renovated it, so it's bigger than it used to be."

"I did. Weren't you the one who told me to wash up before dinner?" She reminded him.

He shook his head. "No, not that one. That was the private bathroom just for you. I'm talking about the one that almost looks like an indoors _onsen_."

She gave him an incredulous look. "_That_ bath? But you just had it built last year! Why would you suddenly renovate it?"

"There were a few missteps during construction that made the cold air leak in more than normal. Father decided that it would be a good chance to give it a new look. You know how he is," he added helplessly.

Hisa shook her head in disbelief. "You people… Well, I'll try it out. It's still just a bath, though, no matter how much you spent on it. I can't say I'll fall in love with it."

Hitoshi laughed. "Yeah, I know. I just wanted you to enjoy it while you were here. It should be a good end to a good game of mahjong, I would think."

She nodded in agreement. "That's true. Thanks for forcing me to come tonight. I had fun. Sakino-san's a fun person to have around, isn't he? He reminds me of uncle."

He laughed again. "He does, now that you mention it. He's still in Hokkaido, isn't he? Things should be wrapped up by now, so he should be coming home soon."

"Really?" Hisa smiled in delight at this bit of news. "I was worried that I wouldn't be able to see him before summer ended."

"I didn't think you were capable of being worried," he teased.

"It must be some sort of disease," she admitted mock-seriously. "I'm sure it will go away soon."

"I hope not. Sometimes I wonder if you're even human. Nothing ever bothers you, and you're always so strong. You're brilliant, too. It makes me feel a little small, but I want to work hard and catch up in my own way." He decided not to mention that brief second of vulnerability she showed earlier that night.

Hisa was surprised at this sudden confession. It made her feel a little gratified that she managed to make herself seem that way, untrue as it was. She had her worries; many of them – all focused on her future. University, marriage, maintaining friendships, careers… It all seemed so alien to her, yet so familiar. Well, there was no point in angsting about it. She'd deal with all of them eventually, and she was confident that she'd find a solution.

She suddenly skipped ahead of Hitoshi and turned to look at him with a grin on her face.

"Maybe," she allowed, and then winked. "But I won't let you reach me. Perfection has her own goals in mind."


	13. Chapter 13

There's a reason for the shortness of this chapter; I swear.

Thank you again for reading.

* * *

It was another day of quiet reading in the Fukuji household, and each girl was holed up in her respective room with a book. Naoko had filled half of her bags with books just because she knew this was going to happen while Mihoko just wanted to review her material before she got too excited to study the week before the nationals.

Masuyo called up the stairs, "Mihoko-chan, there's a call for you!"

Said girl flew down the stairs before she even realized what she was doing. When she reached the bottom, she paused and shared an awkward look with her mother before they burst into laughter. Her mother petted her fondly on the head before shooing her towards the phone.

"Looks like that girl is finally getting excited about something for herself," Masuyo remarked to herself quietly.

Mihoko couldn't hear her, of course, as she was already at the antique phone, guessing correctly who it was that called her.

"Hello?" She said breathlessly from her earlier dash and ensuing laughter.

"_Ah, did I interrupt you from something private, perhaps?"_ Hisa's voice inquired teasingly.

"U-Ueno-san! I was doing no such thing," she denied forcefully, blushing a little. It was getting a little easier to defend herself against the other girl's remarks, if only barely.

Not that it stopped her, of course, as was proven by her following words. _"And here I was hoping to remain under the guise of anonymity and continue to heckle you."_

"'Heckle'?" Mihoko repeated curiously. She continued wryly, "I wasn't aware that anyone used that word anymore, and I really doubt that Ueno-san could ever be mistaken for anyone else."

"_Is that so? I am, once again, flattered that my reputation precedes me. Maybe I should capitalize on this by running for Prime Minister."_

Mihoko could only sigh audibly, wondering if it was normal to have those around you constantly make outrageous propositions. Well, to be fair, it was mostly just Naoko and Hisa, and occasionally Kana. Perhaps she should widen her social circle.

The laugh on the other end brought her back to the conversation at hand, and she nearly blushed again in embarrassment. How could she lose focus at a time like this?

"_All right, I get it. I'll try to be serious from now on, but don't think of that as a promise, okay? In any case, that's not why I called. I wanted to apologize to you for suddenly leaving without warning. Something came up and I had to go for a few days. Haru-san informed me that you had visited when I got back."_

"There's no need to apologize, Ueno-san," she hastened to respond. "I really didn't mind. It was my fault for coming by unannounced like that. I should have called ahead or sent word somehow…"

"_No, no, that's not how this conversation is supposed to go,"_ Hisa lightly chastised. _"I apologize, and you scold me, and then I'll apologize even more, saying that I'll do anything to make up for it. Then you make me promise to take you out on a date where I cover all of the expenses, and then I agree eagerly, wanting to do anything to salvage what's left of our relationship."_

Mihoko's blush had been darkening steadily as the other girl had continued on jokingly. The slight sudden ache in her chest was overshadowed by her flustered reaction.

"U-Ueno-san! Th-That's-! How can you say that so plainly?"

She was responded by a laugh, which only served to frustrate her even more in her embarrassment.

"_Anyway, why don't you come over today, if you're free? I'll make it up to you. My uncle recently returned from his business trip, and I think you'd enjoy playing against him. Of course,"_ she added,_ "that's just my way of saying I want a rematch, and I'm not unwilling to bribe you for one."_

They both giggled at that. Mihoko realized that part of why she was so fascinated by Hisa was due to the girl's refreshing honesty in her intentions. There was no attempt to compliment her just to get in Mihoko's good graces, no lying to make herself look better than she actually was, and no false modesty that the world seemed to expect from everyone. In short, she accepted who she was and accepted others in exactly the same way. It was something that Mihoko hoped to learn from, and something that Mihoko hoped to become.

"If Ueno-san is willing to go that far, then it would be rude of me not to accept," the blonde replied graciously, smiling as she said the words.

"_Good! I'm glad to hear it. I don't know what I would have done if you had refused. I hear that renting jets to fly messages on a banner has become really expensive these days, so you can see why I was worried."_

"Ueno-san, I really don't think that would have been necessary, even if I had refused," she reasoned calmly, still unable to keep the smile off of her face. In fact, it only seemed to grow wider as time passed.

"_No, I really think it would have. These things are important."_

"I see," Mihoko said helplessly. "What time would be best for me to come?"

"_Now."_

"Now?!" Mihoko was so surprised that she nearly dropped the phone. It took all of her hand-eye coordination and concentration to keep the handset in her hands. As she replaced the earpiece back to her ear she could hear the other girl's tinkling laughter. She flushed, realizing the joke.

"_Whenever is fine. I won't disappear again this time."_

Mihoko knew she had no right to feel so happy at hearing the last reassuring phrase, which was aimed directly at her, but she couldn't help it. She tried to convince herself that the other girl probably said it without even giving it a second thought, but she was still touched. Is she supposed to be obsessing about mere words like this?

"All right. I will come by later today."

"_See you then. Oh, and your friend is welcome, too. Not that I really think she'd come, but I felt I should at least extend the invitation so that she can officially reject it."_

The blonde giggled at that. "You're probably right. I'll be sure to tell her."

"_Great! I'll look forward to seeing you again."_

"Y-You too, Ueno-san."

She rushed to the bathroom before her mother could see her face. Cold water was the only thing that could save her burning face now. She was better at handling Hisa's comments, but her physiological reactions were also getting worse.

A knock on the bathroom door diverted her attention from cooling her face over the sink.

She blinked. "Yes?"

Naoko opened the door and shut it behind her. She asked concernedly, "You all right there, Juliet?"

"I'm fine," she replied, the ice cold water quickly dispelling the red tinge on her cheeks.

"Are you sure? When I came down the stairs for some cookies – your mother makes excellent cookies, by the way – the first thing I saw was you running towards the bathroom. Did she say anything that upset you?"

Mihoko shook her head firmly, her blonde hair splashing a few droplets of water on a few surfaces, including Naoko herself. Apparently she had splashed some of the water on her hair when she was cooling her face.

"Ah! I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"

"It's fine," the bespectacled girl assured her, taking off her glasses to wipe the water off with her shirt. "Well, what did she say? It must have been something if it got you so worked up."

"It's really nothi-" Both girls jumped as another knock was heard.

"Are you girls all right in there?" Masuyo's voice could be heard clearly through the door.

The two girls grinned ruefully at each other and Naoko opened the door.

"We're fine. Just having a girl chat in the wrong place, I guess."

Masuyo raised a skeptical eyebrow but stepped aside to let them through. "Well, don't let it become a habit. Some of us actually need to use the bathroom for its intended purpose."

"Oh! I'm sorry mother." Mihoko increased the speed of her exit from the bathroom.

"Sorry about that, Fukuji-san," Naoko repeated, more calmly.

The older woman merely gave them a strained smile as she hurriedly closed the door in front of them, presumably to use the room's facilities.

"That was awkward. Remind me not to do that again," Naoko said with a sigh as they made their way up the stairs.

Mihoko giggled. "Right."

The bespectacled girl followed her into her room and took her usual seat on the blonde's bed.

"Are you going to see her again?" Naoko asked boredly.

"H-How did you know?"

The other girl shrugged. "Just a guess. She doesn't seem like the type to call without a reason, so she probably invited you over again for a game. All of you mahjong people are the same – you can't get enough of playing against good players."

"O-Oh…" Mihoko looked dejected at this reasoning.

Naoko hurried to cheer her friend up. "Th-That's not to say it's the _only_ reason she's interested in you. I mean, she definitely sees you as more than a mahjong machine, what with the way she's always picking on you, right? It's probably the same way a boy picks on a girl he likes before he even realizes that he likes her."

"That's… possible," she agreed reluctantly. "But not probable."

"Don't give up!" Her friend urged. "Come on, what do you have to lose? And besides, one of us has to lead an exciting life. I can't just sit here and let you turn into a boring person – what kind of friend would that make me?"

Mihoko could feel a smile tug at the edges of her mouth. "I could say the same of you, Naoko-san."

"Again with the –san!" She ignored the accusation entirely. "Before we leave this room, you will drop that –san, or else I'll tell all of Kazekoshi that you like Coach Kubo." Naoko took out her mobile from her pocket and dangled it threateningly in front of them. "You know I'll do it."

Mihoko narrowed her eyes. "I'm sure Naoko-san also knows what I can do, as well."

Sudden understanding reached the bespectacled girl's eyes and she hastily put away her mobile, not wanting to spend money on replacing it should the blonde decide to toast it.

"N-Never mind. Anyway, you better make a move when you visit. Is it going to be tomorrow?"

She shook her head. "No, today. She's extending the invitation to you, as well."

"Pass," she replied promptly, to no one's surprise. "Well, good luck, and try your best!"

Mihoko smiled uncertainly. "I will… I guess? I'm just happy being friends with Ueno-san."

Naoko sighed. "We've still got a long way to go…"

* * *

Mihoko pressed the doorbell at the entrance nervously, still anxious that she'd break it just from contact. She issued a sigh of relief when, once again, nothing happened.

"Takei residence. Please st-" There was a moment of static before the voice changed to someone infinitely more familiar. "Hey! Go ahead and push in the door; it's unlocked. I'll meet you on the gravel path."

It abruptly cut off and Mihoko had little choice but to comply. She pushed her small frame against the heavy wooden door and struggled against it for a futile moment. She stepped back when it was clear she wasn't making any progress. How did anyone even manage to enter this house without assistance, she wondered. The door itself was the perfect deterrent, crushing one's spirits once they realized how impossible it was to move it. Then again, maybe it just hated her. Nevertheless, nothing would ever get done if she just stared at it. She continued to try and push against it, willing it to move with every fiber of her being.

It suddenly opened, leaving her off balanced and scrambling to take a hold of something, anything, to avoid falling down on the undoubtedly painful gravel pathway. Her fingers snagged on a piece of cloth, which wasn't nearly enough of a hold to prevent her from falling. She could feel the ground slowly rush up to meet her before gentle arms pulled her up and forwards. Mihoko quickly found herself colliding softly with a warm body and was enfolded into a hug.

"Hey there," the body talked. "I came to get you when you failed to appear. I wondered what had happened, but then I realized that it was harder to open from the outside than inside."

Mihoko recognized the voice and impulsively tried to pull away from embarrassment. The arms around her only tightened their hold, keeping her firmly in place.

"Relax, relax. If you move too suddenly like that, you'll just end up falling again. I'm going to let you go slowly now, okay?"

She nodded silently, trying to keep her blushing under control. She barely felt it spread across her face, so it probably wasn't too bad. Mihoko swallowed nervously as she put her hands around Hisa's hips for support and slowly pulled herself up, trying not to notice everything underneath her fingers. _Especially_ not how her hands seemed to have molded themselves around the hips, nor how the muscles flexed underneath the thin blue shirt that Hisa happened to be wearing. She didn't even know that muscles moved that way down there.

"All right, looks like we're good to go." Hisa patted Mihoko on the shoulder as she released the girl.

Mihoko quickly thanked her, but it was brushed off in the other girl's usual carefree fashion and they entered the mini-mansion.

* * *

"Touma-kun's going to play with us again, too. Kazuki-kun is away doing… whatever he's doing. I think we're better off not knowing, to tell you the truth," Hisa explained. She slide open the door to the mahjong room, where Touma was indeed waiting for them, as well as a bald man who scarcely looked to be in his thirties.

Mihoko bowed in greeting to them both, and they bowed in turn.

"Kenta Takei," he introduced himself.

"I'm Mihoko Fukuji. It's a pleasure to meet you, sir."

His sudden piercing gaze caught her off guard, but she recovered quickly. No response seemed forthcoming, so she turned her attention towards the game. As the tiles were being shuffled, a sense of familiarity niggled at the back of her mind. Why did he seem so familiar? This aura… it was similar to the one that belonged to a man she played against years ago, but her memory of that time was fuzzy. It was on the tip of her tongue, but she couldn't taste it at all. A phantom memory which chased her concentration.

She shook her head and reminded herself to focus. Hisa had mentioned that she learned how to play mahjong from her uncle, which meant that he was much better than her in terms of skill and experience. Add that to the fact that she was playing with Hisa at the same time, and it meant that the game would be difficult to win. She would have to be on guard. On the other hand, this was certainly good experience for the national tournament that was coming up.

The game was difficult, just as she had expected. Touma seemed to sense the atmosphere and ended up dealing safe tiles the whole game, completely avoiding any ambitions of winning a hand. It looked like he would rather just stay on the sidelines as the three battled it out between themselves.

Mihoko was unable to win at all, and Hisa seemed to fare similarly. It was clear that Kenta was in control of the game the entire time. Mihoko managed to scrabble her hand together into _tenpai_, where she _riichi'd_ then won by _ron_ on Kenta's discard. She was doubtful of the validity of her win, as it seemed that it was practically given to her by the man. But why would he do that so illogically? Unlike Hisa's ludicrous hell waits, dealing into another player's hand didn't help one's position at all.

As they pushed their tiles in towards the center of the table for the machine to store and shuffle preemptively for its next game, Kenta fixed her with an intense stare. Mihoko flinched. Why was he…? Oh. Dawning comprehension spread across her face as she slowly began to recall her memories. She glanced furtively at Hisa, wondering if she knew anything. The other girl's blissfully unaware face meant that the next few moments would not end well.

Kenta rested his arms against the table and frowned. "I knew it."

Hisa blinked at him. "Knew what, uncle? Have you met her somewhere before?"

Mihoko already felt the tears splash down onto her hands, which clenched her skirt tightly underneath the table. "I'm sorry! There's little I can do to make up for what I did to you, but please, let me try!"

He ignored her impassioned plea and turned to his niece, his expression cold. "Do you remember the time when I was a rep player for another gang?"

Hisa nodded, slowly starting to piece together the clues before her. Maybe her guess was wrong, but her gut was telling her otherwise. She hoped it was wrong. She had to be.

"And you remember the night when I lost a match and every sense of financial security our family had ever held?" He continued, his voice oddly devoid of emotion, so different from his usual boisterous self.

Hisa nodded again, vaguely aware of Mihoko sobbing at her right, while her uncle was calmly unveiling the truth from her left.

"This was the person who raised the stakes that night, and this was the person who defeated me. Granted, I had foolishly found her confidence amusing and had let her raise them, but nevertheless, she's the one who ruined your chances of ever entering Kazekoshi and the one who brought us to our current situation. Our last round proved it. How she played just now was exactly how she had played that night, and that tile I dealt was the exact same tile I had dealt back then."

Mihoko could only look on helplessly as her friend's (could they even be called friends now?) face slowly paled. She wasn't sure if she was white with rage or white with shock, but either way, the lifeless expression that replaced the normally cocky grin on the redhead's face terrified Mihoko. She wanted to do something, anything, but what could she do when everything was her own fault?

Nevertheless, she had to try. Didn't Naoko say she couldn't give up?

"Ueno-san…" She called her name softly, unsure of what to say. "I'm sorry. I- … It doesn't mean much, coming from where we are now, but please, let me atone for what I've made you suffer! I will do anything. I know we can't be friends anymore, but it's the least I can do. I-!"

"Don't." Hisa's ragged voice cut through her rambled apologies like a knife. She had lowered her head as Mihoko had started talking, keeping her face hidden behind a curtain of red hair. It was hard to see her expression with it blocking her face.

"Don't," she repeated, "call me Ueno-san. You… of all people…"

Mihoko could feel her voice becoming trapped in her throat at these words. They were barely audible, which made it hard to discern any sort of emotion from them, but never had Mihoko heard her speak in such a tone. The redhead had never found it necessary to restrict how many words she said, nor restrain her cheerful nature. To see both of such defining traits utterly vanish was like seeing the light in Mihoko's lighthouse suddenly extinguish. And she was the cause of this.

She tried once more. "U-Ueno-sa-"

"Get out." The other girl's voice was quiet, but no less demanding because of it.

When Mihoko made no move, frozen in a complicated web of emotions, Hisa raised her head. Her eyes were dark with unshed tears and were filled with so much pain and a sense of betrayal that blonde wanted to step forward and comfort her before she remembered that Mihoko herself was the cause of all of this.

"I d-didn't mean…"

"Get out."

Hisa's voice this time was cold and laced with so much hate that Mihoko found herself outside the house in tears and in so much pain that she scarcely knew what was happening anymore.

* * *

**A/N:** What is this I don't even

(You have no idea how long I have waited to write this last scene.)


	14. Chapter 14

Since a number of readers have been confused by my bad writing in chapter 12, here's a clarification: Hisa dislikes Katashi. A lot. – I'll be rewriting that bit later.

Anon: You raise a good point about chapter 13, but I think that referring to it explicitly would have deterred from the story. If I was forced to allude to it more, it'd probably be from Mihoko's side, and even then only briefly. I'll think about it, but I do appreciate your input, so don't hold back.

And the sudden comparison to Girl Friends made me worry for a moment that people might view me as a Hisa x Mihoko troll… then I reeled in my ego and realized that wasn't possible.

Glad you're all still here. Your reviews have been especially kind and helpful, and I am extremely grateful for them.

Oh, and happy holidays, to those who celebrate them at this time of year. Aesyl recommends that you deep fry your turkey and watch your cholesterol levels shoot through the roof. It's quite tasty.

* * *

Hisa pressed against the space between her eyes, closing them in frustration. She had been trying to keep her mind off of recent events by studying, but it wasn't working very well. Memories of all the suffering she had to put up with ever since that day kept creeping back into her mind. She couldn't help but feel extremely bitter about it once she had found a face to put all of the blame on.

So this was how the world worked, huh?

The redhead scoffed, gripping the black mechanical pencil in her hand so tightly it started to shake.

She didn't want to hate the blonde. The girl was fun to be around, and she was heartbreakingly earnest. The feeling in her chest whenever they were together hadn't faded; that irrational urge to protect the crying girl of that day in her room. That was exactly the problem. It was hard for her to reconcile that image of Mihoko with the one she had built up of the person who had capitalized on her uncle's fondness for honesty and completely destroyed the future of the Uenos. And that wasn't even counting the arranged marriage with Hitoshi.

Hisa let out a growl of annoyance and began to take it out on the table by tapping her pencil against it. The steady rhythm of the plastic smacking against the wood helped her focus her thoughts a little more, and she used that extra concentration to delve back into the dark recesses of her memories, of a time where she learned all too well the cruelties of schoolchildren. It wasn't healthy for her, she knew, and it did nothing to help the situation, but she just didn't care. She wanted to feed the growing monster inside of her, the one that was fighting against her logic and reason for control of her emotions. She wanted a scapegoat, and a scapegoat she will have. It was petty, but since when had that ever stopped her from getting what she wanted?

She remembered the day the rumors started. When her friends stopped looking her in the eye. When all talk would cease the moment she slid the door open and entered the classroom. The offensive graffiti and trash that was left on her desk. The sly looks between her classmates and the hasty excuses they made to avoid spending break time with her. She hadn't realized then just how important money was. It wasn't just a status symbol. Oh, no. Apparently, just how much of it your family had was also indicative of your own value to society. Those at the bottom were to be stepped on unmercifully and with undisguised glee.

The best part of it all was how her friends barely reacted and merely followed the crowd. She had already accepted the fact that they didn't have much in common, and they certainly didn't understand her love of mahjong, but that really took the cake. Not a single one of them had spared her a look of sympathy. No, they barely looked at her at all. It must have been nice for them to disown a friend so easily, since they had others waiting for them.

Middle school had felt like it would never end. Every day was filled with jeering insults and a complete disregard for her status as a human being with rights just like the rest of her class. Her schoolbag was used as the class trash bin, with the justification that the contents that slowly filled it up was sure to be more valuable than what was already in it. The ringleaders of the class bullying smirked at her, telling her they were doing her a favor by giving her such "valuable" things that she could resell. The human propensity to lie and exaggerate had never failed to amaze her, and she had slapped one of them the day they said it. Of course, that only caused the bullying to escalate.

Her desk was covered in graffiti every day, and the ones in charge of cleaning the classroom (the students took turns) always made sure to add more once she had finished cleaning her desk after school. Naturally, the other students claimed ignorance when the teacher asked about it. She was lucky enough that the teacher took pity on her and never punished her for it, but it was a small blessing hidden underneath a pile of abuse.

The girls were worse, of course. Horrible rumors were spread by them, almost all of which involved her selling herself in some way, whether it was compensated dating or otherwise. It was almost as if they were waiting to unleash hell upon her, so calculated were their actions. She was aware that she had been moderately popular amongst the boys in her school, but she had never paid much attention to it. Crowd mentality did strange things to people. The boys started to make lewd comments and gestures toward her, saying that they had money if she was willing to put out. She wanted to give back just as much as she was getting, but the thought of causing her parents shame on top of their financial troubles always held her back.

Home wasn't much better, either. They had been forced to sell their home and moved into an apartment.

Mother had been even more impossible to find than usual, and that put everyone in the house on edge. She would come home without warning, placing varying amounts of money on the table, and then disappear again for a time, the cycle repeating itself. No one knew where she went or what she did, and even now it had remained a secret known only to her. More than anything, it just added to everyone's worries. What if she was doing something dangerous? What if one day she wouldn't come home, and the only way they'd even realize she was gone was from a news report that detailed the end result of a gruesome crime?

Her uncle had his share of problems back then, as well. His wife had died years ago, back when Hisa couldn't even speak yet, and her family had taken him in rather than see him succumb to depression and alcohol. He had helped to raise Hisa, who helped him recover without even knowing it. When they sunk into poverty, her uncle sunk into alcohol. Part of the money that her mother brought home was used to fuel his growing addiction, and he often argued with her father over funds and just about anything that came up.

Of course, her father was probably the one who suffered the most. He had used all of the family's savings to help his brother avoid a fate worse than death by the hands of the yakuza gang he belonged to at the time. That money happened to include Hisa's future Kazekoshi tuition, not that she blamed him. She would have done the same in his position. He was the one who tried to keep the household together when everyone started to drift away, with varying degrees of success.

And then there was Fujita, who had been taken in by her family when they found her on the streets in tears. It had been raining hard that day, but there was no mistaking the miserable face of a young crying teenager. Her grandfather had died that morning, and there was nowhere else for her to go to, as she had no other relatives, and no way to pay for her own rent, being too young to work. When the Uenos went broke, she did as many part time jobs as she could, occasionally skipping classes to put in more hours, since by that point, she had grown enough to pass for an adult. Hisa could easily say that she had been her only source of support at that time.

Needless to say, those were not happy times, and things straightened out considerably once she moved up into high school and Hitoshi proposed to her.

Hisa took a deep breath and exhaled it slowly. Her head felt a little clearer, although a faint sense of unresolved anger still ate at the back of her mind. Was it betrayal? It wasn't as if the girl even realized what she had done, which made the situation even more laughably absurd. A yakuza rep player was tricked into gambling more than he was instructed to by his superiors and it was all because of a teenage girl. Why did she do it?

Why?

Her anger quickly disappeared in light of this newly discovered plot hole.

What was worth so much to that girl that she was willing to go into the underworld and risk everything in a game of mahjong? It wasn't the thrill of possibly losing a high stakes game. No, that definitely wasn't it. If that were true, she would have continued gambling, but no one had seen the girl since she won that fateful night.

She looked to have come from a wealthy family, if not an aristocratic one like the Ryumonbuchis, so what could she have possibly needed the money for? It was hard to imagine that girl and her mother as poor people. The lady of the house had too much pride and dignity in her stance for that, and Mihoko herself looked as spoiled as a newborn kitten. Something involving her father, then? But the girl had always spoken of him fondly, and the wife did not look like she would put up with much nonsense.

Hisa leaned back in her chair and looked up at the ceiling, tapping the eraser end of her pencil on her chin. She needed more information. There had to be more to the story than this. That girl wouldn't do anything of that scale just on a whim. This was planned. Perhaps this was a direct attack on the Uenos? But what had they ever done to others? Then again, that theory wouldn't make sense at all, considering how the girl acted around her, as if she had never had a friend before. Hisa wouldn't call herself an expert at reading people, but her gut said that Mihoko wasn't the type of girl who would act out a personality just to take advantage of other people.

Her concentration broke as everything came rushing back to her and the chair landed back on all four feet with a _thud_.

This was so frustrating! Just what the hell did that girl want, anyway? Did she think this was all just a game? Because of her, Hisa had to deal with bleeding bodies almost on a daily basis! This was ridiculous.

* * *

It was a little cooler that afternoon, and Hisa and her uncle were outside on the wooden walkway, enjoying the back gardens together.

"Hisa-chan, how are you feeling?" Her uncle asked kindly, placing a big palm on top of her head and messing up her hair fondly.

Hisa squirmed under the hand, feeling a smile creep onto her face at the familiar gesture. She had been lost in thought again, still puzzling over the mystery of Mihoko Fukuji. Her face must have showed it, as it was usually grinning with a cheeky comment well on its way.

"I'm fine, uncle. Just a little tired," she explained reluctantly.

His expressive face morphed into one of concern and regret. "I'm sorry for what happened yesterday. I let my emotions get the better of me and said too much."

She shook her head and smiled up at him, feeling like a small child once again in his presence. "No, I prefer it this way. It would have been worse if I hadn't known."

Kenta furrowed his bushy eyebrows in uncertainty. "You ran up to your room immediately after she left and shut yourself up in there for hours. You didn't even come down for dinner. Any reaction worse than that would have to be rather extreme."

She shrugged noncommittally and turned to face the pond, watching the fish frolic with each other in the water, almost as if they were dancing. It wasn't as if this was the first time she felt betrayed, so she couldn't really explain her actions. To be honest, she had a hard time remembering much of yesterday beyond the jumbled emotions caused by the crushing truth that her uncle revealed, and the blonde's crying face. Why had she cried? It bothered Hisa that she couldn't find a reason for the girl's tears.

Her uncle exhaled loudly and whipped out a pack of cigarettes, lighting one up and taking a drag. The two sat there in silence, minding themselves. The familiar smell of her uncle's preferred brand of tobacco brought her back to the days when she was still small enough to climb up on his back and demand piggyback rides while he huffed with a cigarette in between his lips. It was nostalgic and comforting, like being wrapped in a warm blanket on a crisp autumn morning. Hisa rested her head against her uncle's large frame, absently wondering why all the kind men in her life were all so big.

After a while, Kenta spoke again. "I don't know why that girl insisted on gambling with those stakes. Even I had balk at it, and I'd like to think I was used to dealing with big numbers under the Koga-gumi. But let me tell you something: that girl was there for a reason, and she wasn't going to leave until she finished what she came to do. She was a very strong girl; much like you," he added affectionately, roughing up her hair again. "It's hard to come across people like that these days, much less kids that intense."

Hisa frowned slightly as she tried to restore order to her hair. She had a good idea of what he was implying.

"Are you telling me to stay friends with her?" She asked incredulously.

He laughed loudly at that. "You're as sharp as always, Hisa-chan. I don't think you're really as surprised as you look. I bet you've been trying to figure out how to keep your friendship while staying loyal to your family ever since yesterday."

She turned to him, confusion clearly evident in her eyes. "But why would I want to do that? If it weren't for Hitoshi-kun, we'd probably be feeding off of the city's garbage by now because of her."

Kenta laughed again, clapping her soundly on the back, which made her stagger slightly. "You see? That is exactly what I mean! You automatically move to defend your family's honor. Well, let me tell you something," he leaned in conspiratorially. "Honor isn't worth shit if it makes you unhappy."

The door to the inside slid open behind them and they looked back to see the imposing thin figure of her father looking down on them. He crooked an eyebrow at his brother.

"Are you telling her unnecessary things again, little brother?"

He grinned at the accusation and spread his arms wide innocently. "Now why would I do that? Everything I tell her is perfectly necessary, Daichi-niichan."

Daiichi scoffed and said nothing more, but his eyes were tinkling in amusement. He turned to his daughter, who still looked a little stunned at her uncle's earlier remark. His eyes narrowed in concern.

"If he says anything untoward, I won't find it amiss if you decide to hit him. In fact, I encourage you to do so, if only for his own good."

"'-Niichan!" Kenta roared in exaggerated mock-anger. "You traitor!"

Hisa giggled at their antics, watching as her father baited her uncle with carefully placed words while the latter reacted every time. It cheered her up to see their family ties so close even after all that had happened to and between them. No matter how many serious fights they got into, there would always be ten more occasions of goofing off between the two. It almost made her wish she had siblings to share her happiness with, but then again, it was hard to imagine her being happier than she was now with her current family.

Things might be a little difficult for her right now, but she had a mahjong club to take care of. They were all the siblings she would ever need. Kyoutaro in particular made an excellent donkey. Ah. Brother. She meant that he would make an excellent little brother.

She grinned slightly at the thought and excused herself from the two. A quick check of her mobile showed that the hot springs resort had called earlier and she had missed it. The Kiyosumi captain redialed the number and reaffirmed her reservation for seven people next week. She nodded to herself as she closed her mobile. They should be ready for the nationals, even if it meant Fujita had to go a few nights without sleep just to train them. After all, why should she lose sleep when the older woman was a more effective teacher than her?

Oh, right. She still had to call her.

Hisa flipped her mobile open again and scrolled down to Fujita's name. She paused over it for a moment before a better idea popped in her head, and she snapped the mobile closed once more.

* * *

The redhead smiled brightly as the apartment door in front of her was opened slowly, revealing an extremely messy living space behind an equally messy hairdo on an equally messy person.

Fujita squinted at the girl before her with tired eyes before walking back inside, scratching her head absently. She had left the door open, which was a clear invitation for Hisa to enter and shut the door behind her. She did.

"Looks like you've cleaned up since I last visited," Hisa commented cheerfully.

She was answered with something that sounded like agreement, just not in any human language Hisa ever heard. The older woman had put a kettle on to boil and she shuffled back to the only table in the room, where the redhead was already sitting.

The apartment was a small one, consisting of a basic bathroom, a kitchen sink, a refrigerator, a counter, a table, a bed, and a television with a Playstation 2 sitting in front of it. The air had a faint smell of tobacco, and it was easy to guess the cause as Fujita lit one up just now. The floor was littered in clothes and the occasional plastic container that used to hold food from the nearby convenience store. Hisa was always surprised at the lack of instant ramen, but whenever she mentioned it the other woman would go off on a lecture about proper food. It wasn't like Hisa disagreed, but food from a convenience store was hardly what one would call 'proper'.

As the older woman breathed in the smoke, her eyes seemed to wake up a little and recognize the girl in front of her. She blinked.

"What are you doing here so early? Don't you have school?"

Hisa giggled. "You're getting old, Yasuko. Did you already forget that we have one month off for summer?"

"Do you?" Fujita scratched her head again and yawned. "It's way too early for me to be up, much less sit and chat. What did you need?"

"This isn't early. It's almost noon. Anyway, are you free next week?" She asked bluntly.

"Yeah. There aren't any more tournaments in the area, and I'm unemployed again until I can find another job. I won't have anything to do except help out in the soup kitchens and job interviews. What did you have in mind?"

The kettle started to whistle and Fujita rose to prepare the tea before Hisa stopped her.

"I'll get it." She laughed. "You might hurt yourself."

As she prepared the tea, already familiar with where everything was, she explained what she had planned.

"Since the tournament's coming up again, I thought I'd hold another training camp. I want you to come and help with Mako – she plays like an old man and we need to break that and make her more flexible."

Hisa could hear the woman exhale before responding. "That's fine with me. It's always fun to see their faces when they get beaten over and over again."

She smirked at hearing that and brought the tea over in two mugs. "Try not to overdo it. She's not like the other two, you know, so she's pretty fragile."

"Hm? What's this?" Fujita grabbed her arm as she placed one mug in front of the older woman. "You're getting soft on another girl. I don't know if I like that." The cigarette was crushed unceremoniously on a nearby ashtray.

The redhead rolled her eyes. "Oh, please. We're not going out anymore. It shouldn't matter."

Hisa felt herself gently being pulled down into Fujita's lap and hugged firmly from behind. She felt the other woman's lips against her shoulder mumbling, "It matters to me…"

She could smell the mixed scent of tobacco and shampoo from the other woman. Hisa sighed. "You're still such a kid."

"And you've always been far too mature for your age," Fujita responded in kind. "You do so much for them, but what do they do for you? Nothing. You should enjoy yourself more."

Sensing the mood was getting a little heated, Hisa mentioned pointedly, "The tea's going to get cold."

"You're right." Fujita sighed from behind her and let her go, giving her one last squeeze before doing so. The redhead patted her comfortingly on the arm before taking a seat across the table from her.

"Anyway, do you want me to help you clean up while I'm here? It's the least I can do," she offered kindly.

The dark haired woman snorted, taking a sip of the tea. "Is that down payment for my services next week? Somehow, I feel cheap."

"Hey, don't be like that. You know I value our friendship greatly," Hisa chided gently.

"Yeah, yeah…" She changed topics. "So? Do you think you have a chance?"

"Of course!" The Kiyosumi leader nodded. "The prefecturals gave them the experience they need it, and the combined training camp polished them. Now we just need to work out the last few kinks that summer brought in. They've probably been lazing around ever since school ended."

"Like you're one to talk," Fujita commented.

Hisa shot back, "And you're not? Do you even know what day of the week it is?"

"Sure I do! It's… wait, hold on… Tuesday?" It came out more like a question than an answer and Hisa had to hold in a laugh.

"Thursday. It's Thursday," she supplied helpfully.

The older woman groaned. "I knew I shouldn't have drunk so much last night."

"Stop having late night parties by yourself!" Hisa chastised her lightly. "It's depressing. At least come over when you want to get drunk. Uncle's home, so you'd have a drinking buddy."

Fujita's eyes lit up at the news. "Is he? That's great! It'd be just like old times!"

Hisa frowned. "I don't recall you ever being drunk when you lived with us. Hiding something?"

The smoker laughed nervously. "No, of course not! We just used to argue about our sports teams and our favorite horses to bet on. There's nothing wrong with that, right?"

She wanted to rub her temples in exasperation. "Honestly, this is why you two are so much alike. You've definitely picked up his drinking and smoking habits, although you're the only person I know under fifty who uses a pipe."

Fujita smirked. "Don't say that so condescendingly. It's a charm point!"

"Aren't you too old to have charm points?" Hisa teased.

"You brat! We're only separated by three years. Three! That's barely anything," she defended firmly.

"If you say so, obaa-san," she sang out in response.

"You-!" Fujita launched herself at the redheaded girl, who giggled as she dodged deftly out of the way.

"Now, now, you shouldn't move like that," she advised seriously. "You might break your old bones."

The woman let out a groan of frustration as she tackled Hisa, sending both of them to the floor. A short struggle ensued, with Fujita eventually pinning Hisa underneath her with no way to escape. Their eyes locked heatedly; one victorious and one defiant.

The redhead was the first to say something to break the silence.

"I understand how you feel right now, but it's really hard to have sexy time when your used clothes and dishware are all around us," she commented dryly.

Fujita flushed in embarrassment and hastily stood up, gathering up her mess as she did. Hisa helped her, taking a plastic garbage bag to dispose of the empty plastic containers and cigarette butts. She decided not to mention it again, and the mood seemed to lighten up considerably after that.

She had really been in danger there. It had been a while since she had gotten so worked up. Now she remembered why she didn't visit Fujita's apartment much and usually contacted her over the phone.

Theirs had been largely an experimental relationship for Hisa, a few years ago. She was the one who started it, and she was the one who ended it, leaving a heartbroken Fujita to start her own life on the day she moved into her first apartment. That didn't mean Hisa used the woman, however. She had genuinely thought it was love, but it took her time to realize that it was only a fascination with the concept of a romantic relationship, and Fujita's personality, which was much like her own.

"All right, I think that's it," Hisa declared, wiping the sweat off her brow with satisfaction. "All we need to do now is toss those clothes in the wash, dry them, and you're all set."

"Thank you, mother," Fujita answered dryly.

She grinned cheekily in response. "You're welcome, daughter."

The woman could only shake her head. "I really feel for your future kids. But then again, if they all turn out like you, it could be fun to watch."

"What are you talking about?" She asked indignantly. "I won't be having any children."

Fujita raised an eyebrow. "Oh? But aren't you getting married to that Hitoshi guy?"

"That's…" She faltered, remembering for the first time since she her visit everything that had happened. "I'll figure out a way to avoid that. And besides," she added cheerfully, "it's not like he can force me to bear children even if I do marry him."

"Your confidence is pretty amazing, even with odds like these. Or are you just faking it again?"

"Is it fake if I'm sure that something, someone, will come along and fix everything?" She asked helplessly, almost to herself. Fujita's sudden accusation had rung true, and it shook her.

The pro smiled sadly and pulled her into a comforting hug, the pushed away at arm's length once both of their grips weakened. "You already know I would, but I'm definitely not the person you're waiting for, no matter how much I wish I was. And besides, I'm a laughably poor person." She patted Hisa's head. "I know you can pull through, so don't just wait for something to happen. You're going to have to count on yourself more than luck. This isn't mahjong."

"I know it isn't," she stated, "but life is just as reliant on luck as mahjong. It struck once and saved my family from poverty. Why can't it strike twice, or even three times?"

"Listen to yourself! Are those really the words of the Kiyosumi mahjong team leader? The one who brought her rookie team to qualify for the national tournaments? Believe in yourself! You're a great player because you use your opponents' fears against them, and you're a great leader because you're willing to work hard and understand your team. Neither of those two have anything to do with luck!"

Fujita was glaring at her now, but she knew it was for her own good. She wasn't saying those words to be mean, and Hisa knew she should be flattered, but all she felt right then was shame. Had she really become so desperate that she had forgotten that there were things that only she could do in her position? She just had to take advantage of that somehow.

"You're right. Thanks, Yasuko."

Fujita grinned. "Anytime. Just call me when you're ready to leave for the camp."

"I will."


	15. Chapter 15

More angst and exposition… Needless to say, I'm not very good at either. Please bear with it until we get to the next scene.

I've been alluding to the Fukujis being one of the newly rich for a few chapters, but it's likely that I was too subtle about it. I apologize if it seems like a deus ex machina, but that really wasn't my intent.

Thank you very much for the reviews! Also, I've noticed that words do disappear after I upload my documents. Is anyone else having this problem? (The typos, however, are all caused by me.)

* * *

Mihoko had been careless.

She should have expected that something like this would happen. Things left buried in the past do not remain buried for long. She had been far, far too optimistic in thinking that her family could just walk away from it all without a backward glance.

But this… This was too much. She should have recognized Kenta the moment she saw him. With the way Hisa had spoken of his skills, she should have pieced the two together. He had even introduced himself to her! How could she forget such a crucial memory?

Granted, when she had first played against him, years ago, he had refused to give his family name and instead went by his first name. It had been especially awkward for her, as she had never addressed anyone by their given name. That could have been his intent, in retrospect. Mahjong was a game of concentration, luck, and experience. What she lacked in experience she made up for in luck and concentration. By forcing her to call him by his first name, he had already begun the psychological warfare that could preempt a match. It had partially worked, as she had stumbled in her responses whenever he talked during the game, which caused her to become momentarily distracted.

It had been a close match, and she had barely won by taking advantage of one of Kenta's habits. The man had few habits, and he played erratically, so she had to gamble on that tactic, unsure if it really was a habit or if she was just imagining things.

That night had been fateful for both families, although she had been too young to understand the ramifications of her actions on the opposing party. The yakuza seemed like such a powerful entity that it was hard for her to comprehend that the loss of money could ever be a blow to them.

A yakuza rep player gambled using the organization's money, and losses were accepted as long as the money lost was within reasonable limits. Of course, she should have realized that the person responsible for raising the bet would be the one to pay for it if he lost. But she had neatly tucked away her memories of that time and didn't bother to analyze it once she had become older. There were a lot of things she probably looked over, come to think of it. She had been so focused on gambling and winning money for her family's sake that many other details simply went over her head. It was probably better that way, as it helped her concentrate better, but now she was starting to regret it.

If she remembered correctly, Kenta had been part of the Koga-gumi back then. Was he still involved the yakuza? She had read reports of the Koga-gumi being disbanded by the police under the leadership of an exceptional officer, but that didn't necessarily mean that the mahjong player would suddenly join normal society and take up a respectable job. The tattoos on his arms (she suspected he had even more on the rest of his body) prevented him from doing so. The best he could hope for was to join another group that would overlook his failure with the Koga-gumi.

It looked like he lived with Hisa's family, however. Could it be that he was living off of the generosity of his sibling? She tried to recall the things that the other girl said about her uncle. Wait, didn't she say that he recently returned from a business trip? Perhaps he had started his own business, like her father?

No, no, no. She was focusing on entirely the wrong person. She wasn't sure what to even think anymore. Maybe that was why she was focusing needlessly on Kenta when she should be thinking about Hisa.

How do you apologize for something that happened years ago, something the irrevocably changed both of their lives? Her family had profited off of the Uenos, and they didn't even realize it until now. In fact, she hadn't even told her family about this. What could she possibly say? There's nothing that they could do to change anything. This was something that she had to take responsibility for, if only she could figure out how.

Would Hisa even talk to her anymore?

The blonde tried not to let herself sink into despair at the thought. She had claimed illness when her mother and Naoko tried to find out what happened to her, citing the cause of her less-than-cheerful behavior. It was a poor excuse, as everyone knew she was awful at lying, but they hadn't persisted, preferring to let the girl come to terms with whatever happened before talking to them about it.

Her mother had brought her meals up to her and Naoko had spent time talking to her cheerfully outside of her door. Well, it hadn't really been talking in the sense of a real conversation; she just talked about anything and everything that came to her mind. Mihoko guessed it was an attempt to give her support and perhaps cheer her up. She smiled faintly as she imagined the odd sight of the normally dignified girl leaning against the door, talking to the air.

Her miserable expression returned fairly quickly, however, and she buried her blonde locks against her pillow. Everything just felt so impossible. Things were going so well between them! This… This wasn't supposed to happen this way. Chasing happiness wasn't supposed to ruin everyone's lives. This was it, then.

She'd have to break off all contact with the Kiyosumi leader.

Mihoko shook her head furiously at the thought. No. She can't run away from this. What happened to her resolve? Didn't she just decide that she would take responsibility for all of this and fix things somehow? What kind of leader was she, to go running off the moment things became difficult? The younger Mihoko was so much stronger than who she was now. She wanted to cry in frustration over her helplessness in all of this.

No, calm down. Think. Think. If there was one thing she could do, it was to make the connections between everything she knew. The first thing she had to do was review the facts, and then find the common threads and connect them. Once she did that, all she had to do was come up with the most likely theories and figure out a way to fix things.

Her father had also worked in a business, years ago. He had been the secretary of the CEO, which made it logical for him to be the only one that the CEO trusted. As the company expanded and extended into foreign markets, his employer had been required to make numerous business trips outside of Japan. The problem with that was the fact that the CEO's daughter was left unsupervised while he was gone, as her mother had died in childbirth. Eventually, Satoshi was ordered to watch over her while he was away from Japan, as well as help keep the company running in his absence.

Her father had agreed, albeit reluctantly, unsure if it was the proper thing to do. After all, a man walking along with his daughter on the streets in Japan was an easy suspect for various crimes that involved girls being taken against their will. It came as a surprise, then, when he finally met her, as his employer had always talked of her as if she was still a child. Kiyomi Hasegawa, daughter of Ryuuji Hasegawa, was already in her first year of high school, and proved to be an equal to Satoru in passion when it came to all things literary. A friendship had been easily formed based on this shared interest, and Kiyomi began to frequent the Fukuji household as if it were her own home.

She had been welcomed into the family warmly, and Mihoko had gained a kind sister figure who wasn't as stern as her mother but was also less willing to spoil her like her father. While Mihoko had already begun playing mahjong by the time Kiyomi entered her life, it wasn't until the older girl encouraged her to play for fun that she began to actually enjoy it. Before, mahjong was something she took part in because she didn't want to disappoint her family more than she already had.

Having foreign blood meant that she was a prime target for bullying during her younger years, and her heterochromia only made things worse. With both eyes open, it was easier for her to analyze people and their motives. She had no idea that it could be used for a specific purpose, of course, and had innocently revealed the lies that her classmates spun around each other in their attempts to impress their peers. Once it became known that she was easily one of the higher-ranked students in the school due to her diligent nature and hard work, the bullying intensified, culminating in the accusation that she had been cheating to get her grades as high as they were. There was little they could do to refute this, of course, as whatever test they gave her was deemed invalid by the many parents of her classmates, who wanted their own children to be ranked higher by expelling Mihoko. In the end, the Fukujis were forced to withdraw from the school and entered a different school district. Mihoko avoided opening her blue eye ever since then. She could just pretend that her blonde hair was a fashion statement rather than a natural trait. Needless to say, her family became part of the town's rumors and they were given dirty looks for a while after the incident.

Kiyomi, however, knew none of that and was able to treat Mihoko exactly as the normal girl she was, rather than the social outcast that jealous peers and parents had turned her into. It had helped Mihoko find a little peace within herself, which her parents had been unable to do despite their best attempts. What she had needed was a little bit of recognition and respect from someone close to her own age, and Kiyomi had given her that in spades. The older girl was also new at mahjong, so they had 'teamed up' against the other players of her household, which by that point tended to be her mother, her aunt, and her father (he was able to come home during the week under Ryuuji Hasegawa's work schedule). Having a player at her own level made the game much more fun for Mihoko, and she had begun to take it seriously from that point on.

However, being a child also meant that you believed the world revolved around you. Anything else outside of that scope just didn't make sense, and if the people who you loved happened to be sad or angry, you automatically assumed that you had done something wrong and you try your hardest to fix it. Not that she understood what went wrong until much later.

Apparently, Kiyomi's father had found her cell phone and found incriminating messages on it, all addressed to Satoshi. They were playful and flirtatious, which was all the evidence he needed to sack Satoshi and threaten to ruin the rest of his life if he ever came near Kiyomi again. This was decided without Satoshi ever having the chance to defend himself, which wasn't entirely surprising, considering how protective fathers tend to be of their daughters.

It wasn't as if Satoshi had reciprocated her feelings. He had never been anything but polite and kind to her. Years later, as she had thought about Kiyomi, who she had dubbed '_Kiyomi-neechan'_, she realized that maybe the girl had been lonely and Satoshi was the first person who had treated her as a person rather than the heiress to an international corporation. Mihoko understood very well how wealth could isolate a girl if she didn't choose to use it to buy friends. It was also easy for that loneliness to be mistaken as love once enough attention was given.

Kiyomi was quickly shuffled off to Kyoto after that event, and was engaged to another businessman to cover up the brewing scandal. Her family was effectively unemployed, and their remaining savings slowly dwindled as the days turned into weeks and Satoshi still was unable to find a job. Rather, the moment his potential employers heard his name, they hurriedly ushered him out the door, claiming that they had no more room for extra employees. It seemed that their family's reputation was shattered, and it wasn't even through any fault of their own.

One night, as Mihoko was going downstairs for a glass of water, she heard her parents as they were discussing the remaining funds. Her mother had made a joke about gambling with the yakuza over a game of mahjong, and her father laughed. At the age of twelve, however, Mihoko was confident enough in her own abilities as a mahjong player that she didn't think that was such a bad idea. The last time she had played with both of her eyes open was when her cousin was still able to visit before studies took over his free time. She had managed to slide into second place, by barely a few hundred points (mahjong players start with 25,000 points each and points are taken by the person who wins that round), even though it was only her second game. Her cousin had commented that her eyes were like a demon's all-seeing eyes when she played.

With that in mind, she decided to test her theory online, first. She was still uncomfortable with opening her eye around people she knew, like at her aunt's mahjong parlor, so she didn't test it offline. The first few games went much worse than she had expected. She had come in last place in every one of them before she realized that she was expecting too much and was playing recklessly as a result. Once she had calmed down and tried again, she found that she could read into the players' habits and discards about halfway into each round and was able to plan her hands around them. Her concentration was phenomenal, and she understood just why her old classmates had regarded her as an academic threat.

Mihoko had tried to talk to her parents about it, but they were finding it hard to take her seriously. After all, would you send your only beloved daughter into a yakuza den to gamble a game she had just started playing a few years ago? There were so many things that could go wrong! But Mihoko managed to convince them to at least watch her play a few games online against highly-ranked players.

They had said nothing as she slowly came into first place in all of the matches, including one against a ranked 7-dan. Her father in particular was speechless while her mother was watching her pensively. Masuyo had given her a small, halting nod, knowing that their situation was growing dire and there weren't many other ways for them to earn money.

The first trip to the yakuza-owned gambling den had been a terrifying experience for her parents, she knew. All three of them had lived sheltered lives and had never been involved with such shady characters. Mihoko, however, still had the courage of youth and was focused on nothing more than winning. Everything else was secondary, and there was nothing more important to her than saving her family's smiles.

The first few games were hard to organize, as none of the other players took her seriously. After all, she was only a little girl. What good could she be when she hadn't even reached puberty? They started to accept once she offered herself on the table if she lost. They had eagerly accepted then, betting their money with lecherous grins on their faces as her parents watched on helplessly. Bets involved only the people who made them, and no one else. Any violation of this rule resulted in all earnings being stripped and the player banned from playing there ever again.

She never lost. Not once. It got to a point where riots would start to break out whenever she entered the building, as she had begun to frequent it weekly in order to make enough money. Mihoko learned that the gamblers with deep pockets only came during the weekends, and so she timed her visits to match that. Before long, the yakuza who was in charge of the place took her aside to speak with her alone. They had become concerned that they were losing business because of her. An offer was made to play against their rep player in one final game. If she lost, she would pay double the amount she had earned ever since she started coming to the gambling den. If she won, she was entitled to exactly that same amount of money. It was clear they didn't expect her to win.

If she had been honest with herself, Mihoko didn't think she would win, either. But she bluffed her way through the greetings with Kenta Ueno, who only introduced himself as Kenta, and convinced him to raise the bet. She had hit puberty by then, and she was aware that her body could be used to her advantage. That was easily the case with Kenta, which was made doubly effective as not many females gambled with the yakuza at the time… or, at least, not with rep players like Kenta.

She was thrown off by how much he talked during the game, however, so it seemed that both of them had their own psychological games to play. Mihoko had retained enough of her focus to force him to _ron_ into her hand in the last hand, finally getting a grasp of his erratic playing style after four rounds. It barely put her in first place, as the entire game had them hitting points off each other in minute increments, making it anyone's guess who would win.

She dully remembered how Kenta's face paled as he realized his defeat. Her own emotions had occupied her thoughts more than anything that night and she could scarcely believe she had won. Mihoko had hurried home afterwards, eager to tell her parents. They had agreed to let her go alone; as she had explained to them that they made her nervous if they watched while she played.

The money was delivered to them the next day and Satoshi quickly called up some of his old business contacts start the beginnings of Fukuji Corporation. It wasn't that they had abandoned him in his time of need, but rather, business was business, and personal feelings couldn't get in the way of that. They all understood it.

With all of that on the table, it was easy to see why Hisa had been unable to go to Kazekoshi after their fateful meeting, if not her sudden disappearance at the tournament. Kazekoshi's yearly tuition was considerable, and mahjong scholarships were only recently given out, a year after she enrolled. If Kenta had been forced to pay the bet back towards the yakuza, then Hisa's parents were probably kind enough to help him out at their own expense.

However, that also raised the possibility that Hisa could be directly involved with the yakuza herself. Those two men that she had played mahjong with barely looked related to the redhead at all. In fact, the only thing that connected them was their nationality. If she were to hazard a guess, they were definitely yakuza and entirely unrelated to Hisa.

Which also brought up an interesting point. How did the Uenos suddenly become wealthy? And why the name change?

Did they marry into an influential family? But she had seen her father and there was a striking resemblance between the two, unless her father had married again and had taken the wife's family name? That was also likely.

Mihoko frowned as she sat up from her bed to think more clearly. Her eyebrows furrowed in concentration.

If Hisa was part of the yakuza, then which group was it? The only groups she knew of were the Koga-gumi, which had been disbanded, and the Abe-gumi, which looked to be in some sort of trouble. Jumping to conclusions here wouldn't get her anywhere, though. There were too many groups that could be using this city as its base, and even more outside of the city. Well, this was just a guess. She didn't actually know how many groups were in or out of this city, but she couldn't just assume that the Takei's were involved with the Abe-gumi.

The Abe-gumi was a relatively new group, if what her father told her was correct. It wouldn't make sense for the Takei's to join them and suddenly gain so much wealth. Perhaps they really weren't involved with the Abe-gumi, then. Maybe they were part of a rival gang?

Mihoko sighed. She wasn't getting anywhere at all. There was just so little that she knew about the other girl to even guess what her family might lack. It wasn't as if she could just return the money she won, even though the Fukuji's could easily afford it now. It didn't look like the Takei's needed the money, and Hisa herself seemed unconcerned with university tuition fees, which implied that they had more saved up.

The redhead always looked content, except for the rare occasion when Mihoko mentioned marriage.

Wait, marriage?

That… wasn't entirely unusual, she supposed. The blonde couldn't imagine the other girl being happy as a housewife. She always looked happiest when she was playing mahjong or chatting with her teammates, so it would make sense that she wouldn't want to be chained down to that sort of life. Right?

She wasn't sure anymore. Was she just projecting her own glorified version of Hisa onto the girl? How much did she actually know about her? All they ever did was joke around. It was rare that they ever talked about anything substantial. The other girl was uncertain of her future and she enjoyed being with people. That was all that Mihoko knew.

So why had she felt as if her world was ripped away when Hisa glared at her and told her to leave? Mihoko knew she looked up to the other girl, in a way, and that she was embarrassed whenever Hisa said something unexpected, but that was only normal, right? She admired the other girl's strength and confidence, and was grateful for her first compliment about her eyes. Saving her at the store was also something that she felt she owed the other girl, and she was… fun to be around.

Even a crush wasn't supposed to feel this painful, right?

Wait, why was she even thinking about her crush? They were friends, and friends become upset when they fight. Although, this was far from the ordinary teenage fight, and both were more than just 'upset'.

It had been days and still Mihoko couldn't think of a way to apologize to the Takei's. Perhaps she could ask her father to look for any Takei's in his business records. They might have invested in their company before. If she was lucky, they would also be listed with their affiliated yakuza group.

It wasn't much, but it was a start. All she needed was a lead, and something to focus on. She had been chasing her thoughts for days now, trying to make sense of things, and while most of what already happened seemed to be cleared up, the solution was still beyond her grasp. In the meantime, she could always keep trying to contact Hisa.

Even if the other girl didn't want to see her, that didn't mean she had been acquitted of the pain she had undoubtedly caused Hisa. She wouldn't give up. Her entire reason for even attending Kazekoshi was to meet the other girl and become friends with her, regardless of whatever else her heart felt. She was lucky enough to meet her again in this year's prefecturals, and even luckier to have come across her during her last summer break. Mihoko couldn't let this chance slip away.

The blonde smiled slightly, tucking in a stray hair behind her ear. She gripped the sheets underneath her hand firmly. She was definitely being selfish this time, but the least she could do was pay back the kindness that the other girl had shown her. This was more than just trying to salvage a wrecked friendship. This was saving a summer memory.


	16. Chapter 16

I'll edit the previous chapters when the thought of touching any sort of exposition again doesn't terrify me.

Sorry about the delays (I needed a break from writing), and thanks for the continued support. Updates will be back to normal starting with this chapter.

Terms:

_Nabe_ – Japanese hotpot. Usually eaten in the winter months.

_Yakuman_ – A blanket term for various very hard-to-get hands in mahjong. Each is worth 32,000 points or more, depending on various circumstances. Since mahjong matches start each player off with 25,000 points, getting hit directly by one can end the game (the game ends early when your points hit 0 or below).

* * *

"All right! Is everyone ready to leave?"

Hisa patted the side of the bus she had rented for their training camp. She placed her other hand on her hip and grinned at her team.

They looked pretty good, she thought. Well, that was if you discounted their glum expressions at having their summer vacation interrupted. Nodoka and Saki in particular seemed to be getting along well. Those two had formed an odd friendship ever since the day Saki had defeated the middle school champion in their club room on a rainy day. Or was it a rivalry? Hisa could never tell when it came to those two, as the brown haired girl was always optimistic and Nodoka was always so serious. A friendly rivalry, then, although they seemed to be more friendly than not, if their shared tans were any indication. She supposed the two had spent their summers together at a beach.

Kyoutaro and Yuuki were making quite the scene a little bit behind everyone else. The short girl had incited another dismissive reaction from him, which caused her to react violently. Hisa wanted to shake her head whenever she watched those two. It was like watching siblings fight, if siblings ever flirted with each other… which they probably didn't. Maybe they weren't like siblings at all.

The Kiyosumi leader scratched at her cheek thoughtfully. She needed to work on her similes.

She cupped her hands around her mouth and tried again, louder this time. No one seemed to have heard her the first time.

"Oy! Are we ready to go, or am I going to have to leave without you?"

"Hold on, buchou. Let me stretch for a little bit," a voice called out from her side.

Hisa turned to face the voice, and could only stare. "Are you… doing Tai Chi?"

"Yeah. My grandfather and I do it together every day. It helps my bones," Mako explained as she moved.

"Why would your bones need help in the first place?" The redhead was thoroughly puzzled. Her green haired friend was _younger_ than her, and had a healthy appetite to boot. She doubted the other girl had any need for Tai Chi, as she ate properly and didn't laze around as much as Hisa herself did.

Mako only shrugged slightly in response, unbothered by the incredulous tone of her voice.

Kyoutaro suddenly appeared from inside the bus. "Buchou! We've put our bags inside the bus. Should we head inside now?"

She must have been distracted by Mako's old man tendencies to have missed that. Hisa gestured for them to go ahead and board the bus.

"No handholding while you're boarding!" The Kiyosumi leader warned a certain pair. "You could hurt yourself!"

The two blushed a dark shade of red and quickly retracted their hands to their sides. Hisa smirked a little at the sight.

"You really didn't have to do that," her bespectacled friend chastised her quietly as they boarded the bus together.

She shrugged. "They don't pay attention to their surroundings when they do that."

"And you wanted to tease them." Mako fixed her with a slightly accusing look.

"And I wanted to tease them," Hisa agreed with a smile.

The two took a seat towards the front of the bus while their underclassmen were being rowdy in the back. More specifically, Yuuki was arguing with Kyoutaro again while the other two freshmen were blushing and holding hands. Again.

The Kiyosumi leader turned to look outside the window as the bus started up. It was a fairly nice day out and she was glad the bus had air conditioning, unlike her own home. Her father didn't believe in air conditioning, reasoning that such a luxury was only a mark of western wastefulness. While she couldn't exactly disagree, it still would have been nice to have during hot days. At least her apartment came with it pre-installed when they first rented it out.

"You look tired," her friend remarked from beside her.

"Hm, really?" She faced Mako with a raised eyebrow, unsure of where she came to such a conclusion.

The second year sighed. "Yes, really. You've got some shadows under your eyes. They're faint, but they're there. If you're not careful, you'll get sick right before the nationals."

Hisa resisted the urge to check her reflection against the window. Did she really have shadows? She knew that things have kept her from sleeping at her usual time, but maybe she wasn't dealing with it very well if it was starting to affect her physically.

She shrugged off her friend's worries and grinned. "I'll be fine. I've just been staying up late looking over those records that Yumi-san gave me."

Mako frowned. "You were doing that even before break started, and you seemed fine then." She paused, biting her lip uncertainly. "I don't want to be nosy, but did something happen?"

Hisa felt her grin start to strain at those words. Since when did she become so transparent? And it wasn't as if she was trying to hide everything, exactly. She just didn't want anyone to worry when they didn't need to. It's not as if they could do anything about it. No, she just found out that her new friend just happened to be the one person who orchestrated her family's fall into poverty and prevented her from ever attending Kazekoshi. What could her friend possibly say to that? Even her uncle wasn't particularly helpful. All he told her was to stay friends with the blonde girl. Why? It didn't make any sense to her.

Even with all of that, a part of her just wanted to tell someone about it besides her uncle. He was too involved, and even though he had only positive things to say, it still felt biased to her ears. Or maybe she just wanted someone to agree with her and help vilify the blonde girl in her mind. She was having a hard time doing that on her own since the Kazekoshi captain's embarrassed face kept appearing, which caused her to have conflicted feelings of fondness and resentment. You're supposed to hate your family's enemy, right? So why was it so difficult? Was she even an enemy anymore?

Mako must have seen the storm of emotions that passed through her friend's eye. She patted the Kiyosumi leader on the head comfortingly. "Well, you can tell me in your own time."

Hisa couldn't help but smile a little at the gesture. "Just how old do you think we are? You didn't have to pet my head."

"And what's wrong with that? You looked like you needed some sympathy," the other girl explained defensively.

The redhead only shook her head in amusement. Oddly, she did feel better after that. Even if her friend acted far older than she should, she didn't feel as if she was being patronized. Maybe there were benefits that came with having a friend as odd as Mako.

"Man!" The bespectacled girl stretched her arms. "I should have brought my lunch."

"Don't tell me you want to eat lunch now?" Hisa asked her in surprise.

Mako gave her a serious look. "Well, yeah. When else would you eat it?"

She laughed at that. It was nothing new or surprising, but maybe that was why it was so refreshing. A little bit of the expected was probably the best thing for her right now. She could always count on Mako to never change, no matter how unique her eccentricities were. It felt like her one anchor to sanity when everything else seemed to be crumbling in front of her.

"It's not that funny, you know," her friend remarked, blushing slightly in annoyance.

"Sorry," Hisa replied cheerfully, sounding nothing of the sort. "It's just been a busy summer for me. I didn't realize how much I missed you and everyone else here."

"You sound like you've already graduated. You should just enjoy the time you have with us," Mako said simply.

"Now who's being embarrassing?" She teased, and then sobered quickly. "But you're right. I think I'm rushing ahead too much. Anyway, enough about me. How has your summer been? Did you hire any cute waitresses?"

"Thankfully, no," Mako answered wryly. "If we did, I get the feeling you'd visit us every day without even buying anything."

Hisa spread her hands innocently. "What, me? Why would I do that?"

Her friend grinned and continued on, ignoring her blatant lie. "Business is doing well, like I said. Grandfather and I actually saved enough to visit Ogasawara Islands to go fishing on a weekend. It's pretty amazing there. The fish were practically leaping onto our hooks!"

The redhead could tell the other girl actually enjoyed fishing, as her eyes were sparkling with fond remembrance. "And you didn't invite me? I feel left out."

Mako blinked, brought back to the present from her mock-injured tone. "You like fishing?"

She shook her head. "No, I was just joking. I tried it a bit earlier this summer, but it takes too much work. I'd rather just buy my fish already cooked."

The green haired girl chuckled. "That sounds like you. I can't imagine you actually de-scale and gut a fish yourself."

Hisa pretended to make a horrified expression at that, even though she had seen much worse than mere fish entrails over the past few weeks. The bodies that had dragged themselves to her family's door were becoming more and more gruesome. She was seriously considering entering the medical profession just to treat them properly. Basic bandaging can only do so much. Well, at least she knew what to study in university now. She found it ironic in more ways than one.

"Is Fujita pro coming again?" Mako asked curiously, breaking her train of thought, which was quickly growing dark again.

"Yeah," she nodded. "Just to help you out."

"M-Me?" The other girl stuttered, face paling slightly.

"Hey now, don't look like that. We're doing this because we care about you, not because we want to beat you into submission," Hisa tried to reassure her.

"That doesn't mean you won't enjoy doing it," she responded flatly.

The Kiyosumi leader scratched at her cheek sheepishly. "Okay, you got me, but you should still look forward to it. You rely on your memory too much, and you don't really have any tactics of your own. You're going to be playing against teenagers, not old men."

Mako winced slightly at the swift criticism, but nodded in resignation. "All right, I get it. I guess asking you to take it easy on me won't change anything, right?"

Hisa smirked. "Right."

* * *

Once they had arrived, Hisa instructed Kyoutaro to unload the mahjong table from the bus and set it up in the middle of the tatami-covered room. Everyone bid the driver farewell and eagerly grabbed their toiletries for the outdoor baths. The unspoken rule of training camps was that the baths were always the first destination. Kyoutaro, unfortunately, was forced to stay in their rented room and practice online once he finished setting up the electronic table.

"Don't you feel any remorse for the guy?" Mako asked their leader once the girls had settled down inside the water.

Before she could reply, a dry voice from behind an outcropping of rocks answered for her.

"That girl likes overworking her underlings. You shouldn't be surprised."

All of the first years jumped in surprise, reflexively clutching their towels around them.

"F-Fujita pro!"

Hisa merely raised an eyebrow while Mako looked slightly alarmed. No one had expected anyone else to be in the outdoor baths with them.

Fujita waded towards them and sat against the rocks, across from Hisa. Even without her usual black garb, she looked every bit as intimidating as she usually did. Well, that is if you weren't aware of her more human qualities, like her extreme laziness. Hisa had to stifle a snicker at her teammates' awed glances towards the pro.

"I think I said this before, but just 'Fujita' is fine," the smoker said casually, her trademark pipe absent. Smoking wasn't allowed inside the premises.

"You're up early," Hisa remarked with a smile.

"It's almost noon," Fujita replied, mirroring their previous conversation.

"Don't worry, Nodo-chan! I'm sure you'll defeat Fujita with the power of your boobs!" Yuuki's unmistakable voice echoed around the deserted baths.

Her pink haired friend blushed at the mention of her sizable chest. "And what does that have to do with anything?!"

"It's okay, Nodoka-chan," Saki said calmingly. "I think they're just fine."

"S-Saki-san…" Nodoka's blush only grew darker.

Hisa suspected that either of the two girls had grabbed the other's hand under the water. She almost rolled her eyes at the scene. Those two needed to do something soon; otherwise they'd both burst from the amount of blood that was constantly sent up to their faces. She never recalled being that way with Fujita. Then again, she supposed it wasn't really much of a relationship at all, as far as sentimentality was concerned.

"It looks like your underclassmen seem to be getting along just as well as I remembered," Fujita commented archly.

"Well, that's one way to put it," Mako responded with a sigh.

Hisa splashed a little water towards her green haired friend. "Seriousness isn't allowed."

The other girl sputtered as the water hit her glasses, clearing them a little since they were previously fogged up. The redhead took this as a warning sign and quickly ducked behind Fujita, who was taller than her by a good few centimeters. The older woman turned her head to look at Hisa over her shoulder, curious at her sudden change in positions. It was lucky that she did, as the next instant Mako sent a wave of water over to them, which hit Fujita squarely on the side of her face that wasn't focused on the redhead.

The next few moments seemed to move in slow motion, and all of the high school girls held their breath.

Mako offered up a halfhearted apology and tried to make light of the situation. "At least… I didn't hit your entire face?"

Fujita wiped the water off with one swift move and slowly turned back to meet the green haired girl's scared red eyes. The older woman closed her eyes, almost as if she was silently praying for patience, and Hisa peeked out from behind her.

"I think you should run," she whispered loudly towards Mako, who subconsciously started to back away.

"No, I don't think so," Fujita smirked as she opened her eyes, a predatory gleam evident in them. She unwrapped the towel from around her body and began to advance towards the girl in front of her.

Hisa decided this was probably a good time to intervene. Fujita could take jokes as well as any other person, but she also gave back twice as good as she got. The Kiyosumi leader did _not_ want her teammates to be too sore to play mahjong, even if she didn't mind teasing them endlessly. She hurriedly restrained the woman, keeping her in place. The towel in Fujita's hands was already twisted into a make-shift whip with a decent reach.

"Oy!" The smoker shouted at her as she struggled against Hisa's grip. "Let go of me! You've got the nerve to use me as a shield, but now you won't even let me get my revenge? Just what kind of relationship do you think we have?"

"Relationship?" Hisa asked innocently. "I thought you were my servant."

The redhead found her vision flipped upside down as her legs were suddenly swept out from under her. A hand, not her own, behind her head prevented her from banging it against anything hard, like the outcropping of rocks behind her, but that didn't stop her from getting a mouthful of water. She swallowed a little bit of it reflexively and blanched, trying to remind herself that at least everyone had bathed before soaking in.

She noticed an arm in her periphery vision and made to grab it, hauling herself up once she had a firm hold on it. The person the arm belonged to, once the water cleared from Hisa's eyes enough to let her see everything properly, was struggling not to get dragged down herself from the redhead's own downward pull. She let go of the arm promptly once she regained her footing. Oh. It was Fujita.

"That was dangerous," she remarked as the older woman splashed into the water ungracefully.

"W-What?!" Fujita surged to her feet, the water moving up with her body before falling back down once gravity took hold of it. "You're the one who started this whole mess! If I hadn't held your head back, you would have slammed it against the rocks!"

Hisa grinned. "That wouldn't have happened in the first place if you hadn't tripped me."

"And what else was I supposed to do? Bite you? You wouldn't let go," the other woman reasoned with a frown.

"Sure I would have," she disagreed amiably. "Just not when you were about to injure my cute club member."

"You're exaggerating. I wouldn't have hurt a single hair on her head!" Fujita said defensively.

"Oh, come on now. We both know how you get carried away when it comes to payback," Hisa said wryly.

"Unlike _you_, I'm not that petty," the mahjong pro shot back.

"Don't you get the feeling that we're being ignored?" Yuuki asked, seemingly to no one in particular.

"Maybe," Nodoka agreed, "but it's probably for the best. Let's leave before anyone else gets caught in their crossfire."

"I hear ya," Mako replied hastily, relief clear on her face at Fujita's sudden change in target.

The four female underclassmen of the Kiyosumi mahjong club left the outdoor baths and returned to their room. Hisa and Fujita stayed behind, barely even noticing that they had left. They were still arguing.

* * *

Hisa had spontaneously decided to do some last minute shopping for general supplies. She left her teammates and Fujita back at their rented room, which gave her plenty of time to wallow in her thoughts and muddle through her mixed feelings. Well, that was if Kyoutaro hadn't insisted on tagging along. He was surprisingly hesitant about letting her go alone, explaining that he was usually the one who went to buy the supplies, so he was worried that she wouldn't know which things to get. That was what he said, anyway, but Hisa suspected it was a form of male chivalry. It was silly, but endearing in a way. She could almost see the man he would grow into one day. Hisa resisted the urge to reach over and pinch his cheeks right then and there.

"Hey, buchou, are you sure you don't want me to buy the stuff myself? I mean, it's not exactly fun, and I'm sure you'd rather be back with the other girls," Kyoutaro rambled uncomfortably in the prolonged silence between them.

"I wonder if I'm turning everyone around me into a masochist," she wondered out loud, thinking about how odd it was for someone to voluntarily take up work.

"Buchou?" He looked confused.

"Don't worry about it." Hisa patted him on the back. "But yes, I'm fine. With me gone, Yasuko can play freely without worrying if she's playing the way I need her to play. I'm not just doing this because I'm suddenly feeling altruistic."

Kyoutaro smiled ruefully, rubbing the back of his neck. "Ah, I thought it might have been something like that."

They walked along in silence for a little bit more. He finally seemed relaxed around her, once he realized that she wasn't going to make any unreasonable demands of him just yet. Hisa wasn't sure if she should feel amused or offended by that. On the one hand, every girl wanted to feel attractive, but on the other hand, he was two years her junior and wanting any kind of attention from him would have felt… wrong on so many levels.

"Buchou?" He asked again, his voice holding a hint of nervousness.

"Hm?"

"You were staring at me. Did I get dirt on my face again? Saki-chan always says I can't keep myself clean no matter how hard I try, and I _do_ try," he rambled again.

So much for being relaxed. She inwardly sighed for letting herself get lost in her thoughts so obviously. Well, she might as well take advantage of the situation. Being reckless with him couldn't hurt. He was just a boy, so what he said would be exactly what he thought. She wouldn't have to worry about him gossiping or trying to read into what she said.

"I was just thinking," Hisa said with a smile. "Say, Kyoutaru-kun. What would you do if a friend did something bad to your family, but they didn't know it was your family?"

He blinked at the loaded question, not recognizing it as having any sort of connection with her. Hisa could almost see the gears turning in his head as he thought about it, rubbing his chin absentmindedly.

"Well, I can't imagine having a friend that would normally do bad things to begin with, but if it was just that one time, I think I'd forgive him," he reasoned out slowly.

Hisa furrowed her eyebrows in puzzlement. "You would? Why?"

"He's my friend, right? And if he was a good person, I think he'd have his own reasons for doing something like that. You can't really blame someone because of circumstances." Then he added with a small frown, "But I'd probably be mad at him for a while. We'd probably be really stupid about things until we had a chance to fight each other. 'An eye for an eye', you know?"

"I… guess," she agreed hesitantly. The redhead was finding it hard to imagine herself fighting the Kazekoshi captain. Or rather, she couldn't even see herself touching the other girl in anger, even though she really was quite angry. Somehow, fighting didn't seem to be the solution, and neither was simply forgiving her. Was Mihoko a good person? She seemed like one, but Hisa was starting to have doubts. No self-respecting girl would gamble at such a young age, right?

"Anyway, buchou, that was kind of a weird question. Was that for a story or something?" He looked at her curiously.

"Yeah, something like that," she lied easily, glad he gave her an alibi to work with. "I was writing out odd scenarios the other day to see if I could accurately predict how people would react in them. Thanks. You really helped me out."

"No problem," he replied with a smile. "I'm glad you asked. People think I'm stupid because the only thing I'm known for is being part of the mahjong club, and even then I'm still just a beginner. It's nice to be reminded once in a while that I'm worth more than that. I'm not just a gofer to you, right buchou?"

Hisa considered teasing him but decided it wasn't worth it. Whether he knew it or not, he really did give her valuable advice. At least she could see things a little more from her perspective now. She realized that she really did want to stay friends with the awkward blushing blonde, despite everything.

"No," she agreed with a light shake of her head. "You're a friend."

* * *

When the two returned from their shopping trip, laden with vegetables and raw meat for _nabe_, they found Mako and Yuuki each huddling in a corner. The other occupants of the room were chatting amicably over the now-unused mahjong table. Glancing at the tiles, which hadn't been pushed into the center for shuffling, showed that someone dealt directly into a _yakuman_. Hisa almost winced at that. Being on the receiving end of a _yakuman_ was the last thing that anyone wanted.

"Hey everyone," she greeted cheerfully. "We brought the ingredients for _nabe._ Do you want to eat now or later?"

At the mention of food, Yuuki dashed to Kyoutaro's side and began sniffing at the bags he carried. Her eyes lit up as she smelled something familiar. She asked hopefully, "Did you bring any tacos?"

"Yes." The boy paused as he tried to struggle with the girl that suddenly attached herself to his arm. He tried to continue his sentence valiantly, "We brought tac – _will you get off of me?!_ What are you, a _dog_?" He shook his arm frantically but to no avail. She wasn't letting go.

"You cannot deny me the joy that is tacos!" She declared happily, seemingly content with their position.

"I'm trying _not_ to deny you your tacos," he explained irritably. "Get off of my arm already so I can give them to you!"

Hisa only smiled a little at the scene and turned back to the rest of the occupants. Mako seemed to have recovered and was sitting back at the table, studying the tiles, presumably trying to analyze just where she went wrong.

"We're ready to eat anytime you are, buchou," Nodoka said politely.

Fujita was less so. "Why _nabe_? It's summer. We're in the wrong season for that dish."

"Don't complain about food you didn't pay for," the green haired girl said reproachfully. "Besides, my bones could use the heat from some hot soup. It gets chilly at night."

Hisa blinked. "There are so many ways I could reply to that. I don't even know where to begin."

"Ah, do you want me to help you with that? I make dinner for my father all the time, so I'm used to it," Saki offered helpfully.

The redhead waved her off. "It's fine. All you have to do is stick the food in the broth and watch it cook, right?"

"That's not exactly right, buchou," the brown haired girl disagreed with her. "Here, let me take care of it."

"If you insist." Hisa handed over the ingredients and let the first year prepare the food. To be honest, she didn't want to cook it. She knew how to cook food, but it always seemed to turn out subpar. It would taste fine to her, but other people would always find it either too bitter, or too salty, or too spicy, or… well, the list went on. Maybe she found it hard to concentrate on the specifics of the process. In any case, she was glad it was out of her hands.

Fujita smirked at her over the exchange.

"What?" The redhead asked defensively.

"Oh, nothing. I was just thinking that it must be nice have underclassmen that can cook. I wish I had that luxury when I was in high school," she replied nonchalantly.

Nodoka and Mako looked at each other in alarm and quickly distracted their leader. The pink haired girl took the initiative. "Ah, buchou, I was wondering if you could explain this set of tiles here. I don't understand why you would discard them."

Hisa blinked and walked over. "Oh, this? Well…"

As she explained the strategy to both Mako and Nodoka, the Kiyosumi leader decided that this wasn't a bad way to end her summer. She enjoyed spending time with her mahjong club, and she liked helping them learn and watching them grow. All of them had the potential to become better players than herself, and two of them had already surpassed that point. It gave her a warm feeling in her heart and a strong sense of accomplishment as she sat back and thought about how far they had come.

Sure, she was also the president of the student congress, but who cared about that? Being part of the student congress was an impersonally job. You could barely see any affect you had on the student population, if at all. In fact, the only reason anyone knew her was because she was the president; not through any particular efforts or accomplishments of her own. With the mahjong club, however, she knew exactly how much work her teammates – her _friends_ – put into playing their best mahjong, and they in turn respected her for what she's done for them. Even if she was graduating in the next few months, it had nothing to do with the inevitable fact that the Kiyosumi mahjong club could only move forward.


	17. Chapter 17

Two months is far too long. Apologies. Furthermore, for those of you reading Lestaki's "Yumi" – it has been dropped (yes, you can trust me on this one, and yes, I'm just as sad about it as you are).

And a reviewer left a good point about Mihoko that I overlooked. I'll fix it in future chapters. Thank you for calling my attention to it!

* * *

Over a week had passed since that fateful day at the Takei household. Mihoko had managed to pull herself together and function normally enough, although it was clear her mind was on other things even as she giggled quietly to her father's jokes on the days he came home. Not a word was spoken about what happened with Hisa, and no one had asked in an effort to let the girl heal whatever it was that was troubling her. One person, however, was becoming particularly impatient and decided to stop one of their joint study sessions to address this problem.

The blunt girl snapped her book shut and frowned at her blonde friend. A red eye glanced upwards to meet her own worried browns and Naoko swallowed the words waiting on the tip of her tongue. She hadn't expected that look of determination and detached amusement. It made her normally gentle friend seem a bit crazy, actually.

Mihoko went back to her book and turned a page smoothly, placing a sheet of paper inside the text as a makeshift bookmark. She closed it gently and sat up, stretching her arms out with a yawn.

"Naoko-san, the national team tournament is starting tomorrow. Things might be boring for you if you stay here while I go there to watch."

Her friend blinked at the indirect question and wondered if the blonde had some sort of plan concerning the cocky redhead. That girl from Kiyosumi had managed to pull her team to the nationals after all, and if Mihoko was going there, it meant she was planning on meeting up with her, right? Or maybe she was just going to quietly cheer her on from behind one of the many viewing rooms they had for the audience.

Naoko pushed her glasses up. "It's fine, but you're being really mysterious lately. I'm-," she corrected herself hastily, remembering the worried looks of the Fukujis during mealtimes, "_we're_ worried about you. Don't be afraid to talk to me, okay? Or even your parents, I guess. They'd probably jump at the chance to help you out."

The blonde smiled slightly. She quickly wiped away a tear that leaked out from the corner of her eye. "Thank you, but I'm all right. Why don't we stop for today? I think mother's coming up the stairs to scold us again."

The bespectacled girl's eyes widened in panic and the two hurried to find a board game to place on the table before the matron of the house entered the room. If she caught them studying again, they might have to face a fate worse than merely being cast out of the house for a few hours.

* * *

The morning of the national team tournament found Mihoko staring up at the tournament building somewhat apprehensively. She had arrived an hour before the building opened, and already she could see a few teams milling about the entrance and purchasing snacks or drinks from the nearby vending machines. There was no sign of the Kiyosumi team, but the redheaded student congress president would definitely be at the forefront of their group when they did arrive. The blonde had not planned on what to do after they saw each other. She was hoping to react based on the situation, although she didn't have much confidence in social situations.

She sighed and took a seat at one of the benches near the tournament building, nursing a cup of warm milk tea between her palms. The vending machine had accidentally dropped down two paper cups instead of one, and she absentmindedly wondered if the person who used it before her had managed to retrieve their drink safely. She toyed with the lip of the cup nervously while waiting.

She was definitely being selfish. Definitely. Her stomach twisted slightly in guilt as she tried to imagine how the other girl was feeling. It would be impossible, right? And bothering her on such an important day like this… What if Hisa became distracted because of her? But then again, she wasn't so important that the redhead would think of her during a match. She was just a nuisance to the Kiyosumi leader. Probably.

Footsteps pounded on the pavement and a pair of bright red sneakers came into view of Mihoko's lowered gaze. She peered at them curiously and looked up into the grinning face of her underclassman, Kana Ikeda.

"Captain!" The younger girl gasped out her name, placing her hands on her knees as she caught her breath.

Mihoko blinked, bewildered. "Kana-chan! What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be with your family, enjoying what's left of your vacation?"

Kana shook her head emphatically, her grin never leaving her face. "My family didn't go anywhere this year. Besides," she frowned slightly, "we were worried about you, Captain!"

"'We'?"

"Captain!" A voice behind Kana, which she recognized as belonging to Seika Bundou, called out.

As the blonde peered over the shorter girl's shoulder, she could see the rest of the Kazekoshi mahjong team and two other members of the Kazekoshi mahjong club walking towards them. They were all waving, even Sumiya Fukabori, her usual blank expression contrasting sharply against the worried faces of her friends.

Mihoko blinked again, already feeling overwhelmed that her team would worry about her to this extent. Tears were building up and threatening to fall, and yet the only thought that crossed her mind was that of Hisa, and how the other girl would dismiss her if she saw her in such a state. It made her feel horrible inside for thinking of the other girl when her wonderful teammates and fellow club members were here just for her.

"C-Captain!" Kana hovered over her, wanting to comfort the leader but unsure if physical contact was permissible.

Mihoko stood up, brushing away her tears and smiling gently. "Kana-chan… everyone. Thank you. I'm sorry for troubling you during your summer breaks."

She impulsively put her arms around Kana and hugged her to show her gratitude. The smaller girl in her arms stiffined momentarily before hugging her back tentatively. Mihoko patted her head affectionately. They were all such good girls. She didn't deserve to be their captain, especially in light of her recent negligence as their leader.

As the other girls drew near and gently chided her for not taking care of herself again, her peripheral vision caught a flash of red hair and a knowing smile. She couldn't stop her eyes from following the ends of that smile, which flowed into a generous mouth made for laughing and teasing. She couldn't help but absorb every detail of that face, which she had seen so often until recently. She missed the angular jaw, which did not seem to be made for cupping, but rather hinted at elegance and dignity. The proud straight nose that was rarely, if ever, looked down upon from brown eyes that almost melted into mischief. Brown eyes which, when focused, seemed to bore holes straight into their target. Brown eyes which were looking directly into her own.

Startled, Mihoko impulsively took a step back, unintentionally dragging Kana off balance and struggling to stay on her feet. She quickly remembered herself when the younger girl almost mewled in surprise. In her haste to reassure everyone that she was fine, once more, she lost sight of Hisa and the rest of the Kiyosumi team.

She sighed internally at her missed chance and tried to remember the other girl's expression. It had been smiling with her teammates (and this was an assumption, as Mihoko, quite literally, had eyes only for her) until their eyes had met. How long had the Kiyosumi leader known she was staring? It had felt like forever, but not nearly long enough to sate the ache in her heart and the guilt in her mind. Her gaze, in particular, was unexpected.

As the Kazekoshi captain led her team inside to watch the national team tournaments live, she mulled over the curious emotion in those brown eyes. It wasn't anger, or hatred, or even contempt. If the blonde had to put a name to it, she'd hesitantly call it 'judging', and that, more than anything, made her even more anxious about where they stood.

Truth be told, she wasn't sure of why she came to begin with. To collect data for her mahjong club was one reason, but that was hardly the primary one - she was at least honest with herself about that. It was only after meeting Hisa and being surprised by the lack of hostility in those eyes did she realize she wanted closure. She had already received the recognition she wanted ever since being beaten by the other girl in the tournament, so long ago. Now all that was left was acknowledgement that she was not blameless in that incident between their two families, and that there were reparations to be made. Then she could move on with a clearer conscience.

And, she admitted, she missed seeing the other girl, but that took a backseat to doing what would set her mind at ease.

But that look gave her hope, and she struggled with herself on what to do with it. Should she wait for Hisa to come to her? _Would_ she come to her? Was the other girl merely waiting for her to make the next move? What could she do now, except beg pathetically at her front gate? She couldn't embarrass both families with such an undignified act. Letters felt a little impersonal in this situation, and phone calls _too_ personal.

Perhaps she should congratulate her after the tournament was over, much like the tournaments previously. Testing the waters, so to speak. Again, just like earlier today. Would she be treated to the same reaction? It worried her, and she barely kept it from showing. Hisa, at least, seemed to be doing fine in her matches today.

The redhead was keeping her cool on the large LCD screens screens of the building's tournament viewing rooms. The Kazekoshi team had all crowded in one of them with people from all over the nation who wanted to witness the big event in the same place as it was occuring.

Kiyosumi was advancing steadily throughout the ranks and cleared the preliminaries easily. The rest of the audience were impressed by the skills of the last two players, Miyanaga and Haramura, but to the Kazekoshi captain, Hisa shined brightest of them all. The redhead easily locked her enemies in their own paranoia and played it against them, using bluffs and feints with her discards and calls to throw off their strategies. There was no sign of her almost infamous tile flip, however. Perhaps she was saving it for the finals.

It would be like her to do that, Mihoko mused quietly. But finals would not take place until tomorrow, and Kiyosumi had become one of the top favorites to win. She wondered if perhaps she'd have more success with things if Hisa's school took first place. It was a silly thought, but it was as good an indicator of things to come as any other that she could come up with.

Hisa was kind but Mihoko felt like that was all she knew about the girl. She felt even more guilty for not paying more attention. If she had, she might have been able to come up with a better plan in this situation.

Well. There was always tomorrow, as Naoko would say.


	18. Chapter 18

There are a lot of new fanfics in the Saki section now. Hurrah! I can die happy now (no, you have to finish this fic first). Apologies for how slow I am with updating, and thank you for the support. Let's all work hard to build up the Saki fanfiction archive, okay?

* * *

Hisa entered the private waiting/viewing room that each of the finalist teams were granted and, upon noticing that one of her teammates, Saki, was asleep, she closed the door gently behind her. She mentally took roll call. Kyoutaro and Yuuki were conspicuously missing, although she highly doubted anything interesting was happening where they were. Saki had fallen asleep on Nodoka's shoulder, but the pink-haired girl was clearly wide awake and savoring the moment, if her luminescent blush was any indication. Mako was watching the television commercials, the volume of which had been muted - probably in respect for the first year's exhaustion.

Nodoka and Mako looked up when she entered, and the former nodded briskly to herself, disentangling her arm from her companion. Hisa winked at her encouragingly and patted her on the shoulder as they passed each other. Nodoka's turn to play was after Hisa's, and they all needed to stay upbeat and determined. They had managed to beat out many other schools and become one of the four finalists, but their current ranking wasn't too great.

Kiyosumi was currently in second place, although the gaps between first, second, and third were barely worth commenting on. The top three had been mostly preying on the fourth school, but the second half of any mahjong match, especially a team match, was likely to be an upset.

"Good job out there," Mako said quietly, mindful of Saki's soft snores.

Hisa grinned and shrugged, plopping herself down into a chair and helping herself to a banana.

"I could have done better, I think, but it was fun. Besides," she added around a mouthful of banana, "we're merely holding the fort for our powerhouse first years. The real fun begins with Nodoka's match."

"'Holding the fort', you say..." her friend repeated ruefully. "Well, I can't disagree. I kept getting hit by _tsumos_ in my match, so the points kept slipping away. Sorry again, buchou. You got stuck with my meager leftovers."

Hisa shrugged again, chewing the last of the banana and tossing it carelessly into the trash in the corner of the room.

"You did what you could, and I'm proud of that. I remember those quick hands you threw together to stop the _tsumos_. You've learned to adapt. Besides, I think I gave them a bit of a surprise. They probably thought we were kicked and beaten down by that point."

Mako shook her head with a smile. "I still can't believe you won a hand without declaring _riichi. _It could have been worth more if you had. And you called on so many trash winds, but you ended up in _no ten!_ I can't understand how you play at all."

"It keeps things interesting, right?" Her grin stayed in place until she tried to pour some hot tea, but found that the thermos was empty. She peered into the long container with a frown, hoping to find a few more drops, but found none.

Well, so much for relaxing here after the match.

She stood up. "I'm going to one of the vending machines to get some tea. Do you want anything?"

Her green-haired friend waved her off. "Nah, I'm fine. Go along and take your time. Good ol' Mako will take care of things here."

Hisa blinked. "Uh, right." She opted not to mention what was wrong with Mako's statement and exited quietly. She hoped Saki would wake up soon. The younger girl would be sad to miss the entirety of Nodoka's match.

As she shut the door in front of her, Hisa leaned her forehead against it and let her shoulders fall. What was wrong with her? She had let her concentration wander during the past two days and her team had suffered for it. Not that they suspected anything, of course. There were, as everyone had predicted, many monsters out there and skilled players in their own right. It was only natural that she didn't pull her team into first place when it was her turn. She was good, but she wasn't Saki- or Nodoka-level good. At least, that's what she kept telling herself whenever she felt her points slipping away from her.

Walking to the nearest vending machine took longer than it did in the prefectural tournament building. The national tournament was held in one of the biggest commercial buildings Hisa had ever remembered, but then again, she rarely took notice of buildings to begin with. It gave her plenty of time to mull over the puzzle that was Mihoko Fukuji.

The blonde was definitely somewhere in this building, she realized. If she had arrived yesterday, the first day of the tournament, with the entirety of her mahjong team, then it would make sense for her to be here today as well. The chances of them crossing paths was slim, however. The building was huge, and there were dozens of viewing rooms and about half as many vending machines to buy from.

Hisa unconsciously smiled as she imagined what would happen were they to actually cross paths. She could tease the other girl again; it would be nice to see that blush once more. The blonde was almost unbearably adorable when she was embarassed. But Hisa sobered quickly and almost let out another sigh. As convenient as it would have been, she couldn't let go of her stubborn family pride. She still couldn't get over how her uncle seemed so blasé about the entire affair after his initial outburst. Wasn't he the one who always said that family was everything? Since when did he become so relaxed?

It must be old age setting in, she decided. Everyone seemed to lose their wits once they get older. At least her father was still the same as ever. If this was what happens, then she was determined never to get old. It was as worthwhile a goal as any, she supposed.

Ah, but she was going off on a tangent again. Then again, it wasn't as if they had planned on meeting anytime soon. There had been no communication between the two since that day, except for a brief glance earlier yesterday at the entrance of the building. Today she had timed their entrance for one of the busier hours. She justified it with the logic that her team would need the extra time to rest in their hotel rooms, so they could afford to arrive more or less on time rather than early.

She wasn't precisely avoiding the other girl. They just didn't have time for that right now. They were at the nationals! It was her dream to reach this far with her team. She would have been happy enough with just attending the prefecturals, but to reach the nationals and to become one of the top four finalists had been icing on the cake. Well, considering her recruiting skills, it wasn't that surprising, but to look at where she was now and where she had been before... well, she was supposed to be ecstatic, right? No, she definitely was ecstatic. Even Mako had said she'd been acting differently ever since they reached the building of the national tournament. Although she didn't exactly say if it was a good difference, or bad...

Hisa ran her fingers through her hair in frustration. This was no good. It was like a cloud was constantly hanging at the back of her head, and the more she tried to ignore it, the more she became distracted and anxious. At least she had managed to enjoy her match in the finals and avoided dropping them in last place, despite it all.

Why did it have to be her? Why couldn't it have been anyone else but her? She had finally found a friend that she was proud to call a rival, someone who she could relate with beyond the mahjong table, someone who didn't make her feel as if their relationship was incomplete. Hisa genuinely enjoyed being with the other girl and didn't feel forced to play the role of leader, and all the inherent loneliness that implies. That wasn't to say that she disliked being with her classmates, the student congress, or her mahjong club, or even just with Mako, but she had always been the person that everyone looked up to for direction and advice. Mako did it as well. There was a certain amount of deference in the younger girl's interaction with her that made Hisa feel just the slightest bit on guard. She couldn't fully relax around anyone except Mihoko, and it had only been a month since they had properly met. It was beyond frustrating.

A vending machine came into view and she mulled over what to get. Maybe some iced tea would help. She had planned on buying hot tea, but she might as well get the extra sugar from the pre-made iced tea from the vending machine. As she dropped her coins into the coin slot, she heard hesitant footsteps behind her. The Kiyosumi captain almost winced in dread. She knew her luck was even more unlikely than what a pair of dice can bring, but this was too much. Hisa turned to face Mihoko Fukuji, planning to say something, anything, that would indicate how much of a mess the blonde had made of her life, but as she caught sight of the trembling body in front of her, her irritation dissipated. The vending machine clanged behind her, depositing a can into the receiving bin near her knees; she ignored it.

Hisa took a step forward, subconsciously intending to comfort the other girl, but Mihoko flinched and stepped back, breaking the redhead out of her stupor. She clenched her fists, concentrating on how tense it made her arms feel, and how it reminded her that she had every reason to be righteously angry – but what did she want the other girl to do? Mihoko had already apologized. Numerous times, in fact. Every inch of the other girl seemed to be begging for forgiveness, even if her eyes weren't expecting it. No, her eyes were surprised and determined. A brave girl. Hisa almost wanted to scoff as she saw herself reflected in those eyes. When did she become a coward and decide to run away from everything? Could she face Hitoshi with as much courage as Mihoko had right now?

Not at this moment, no. Hisa inwardly smiled wryly at herself. She exhaled slowly and stiffly loosened her fingers. One step at a time, even if she didn't know what tiles were safe to step on and which were risky. It was another game of mahjong, and all she had to do was have trust in her draws, her actions, and discard the tiles of her past that were holding her back.

All of these thoughts rushed through her mind sluggishly, as if she was watching everything from afar in slow motion, but a few seconds had barely passed. Both girls had gathered enough of their wits to at least prepare some sort of proper greeting for the other. Hisa had already schooled her face into confident indifference and raised a judging eyebrow, while Mihoko was standing with her hands to her chest and looking at the redhead with serious eyes, which were threatening to burst into tears at any moment.

"Captain!"

The sudden intrusion of an energetic voice startled both of them, and they turned towards it. Kana ran towards them excitedly, eyes lighting up at the sight of her beloved leader, and with her presence, Hisa saw a chance to break the ice between the two.

"Kana-chan!" Mihoko exclaimed in surprise. "What are you doing here? Is everyone all right? Are you hurt?"

"We're fine, Captain. You didn't come back, so we got worried. Is this person bothering you?"

The younger girl turned towards Hisa and practically bared her canines at her. The Kiyosumi leader blinked and a grin threatened to break out across her face at the unexpected protectiveness of this cute underclassman. As she prepared some verbal barbs to rile up Kana for her own amusement, Hisa recalled the girl's words. _'You didn't come back.'_ But she had just met up with Mihoko scarcely a minute ago. Had the blonde been waiting for her near the vending machine ever since her match ended? That showed determination, yes, but it also meant that she wasn't quite as courageous as Hisa assumed she was. Otherwise Mihoko would have knocked on the Kiyosumi's team waiting room and asked to speak to Hisa in private. Or maybe she was just overthinking things. Maybe the other girl had felt restless and had decided to wander around the massive building aimlessly. Either way, it was still something to take note of.

"Ah, it looks like the little kitty feels threatened," Hisa commented with a disarming smile.

Kana almost bristled in offense, but managed to stop herself from losing her temper in front of Mihoko.

"I congratulate you on making it to the national finals and for showing us a remarkable game of mahjong, but please do not let it get to your head. You may have beaten us, but that does not give you any right to disturb our captain, nor look down on me."

The two older girls blinked at her civil response, which lacked any of the baiting tones of Hisa's previous remark. Hisa herself was impressed, and more than a little shamed. She had forgotten about Kazekoshi's second successive humiliating defeat, largely by the very hands of her own team. The Kiyosumi leader bowed her head, smiling slightly by way of apology and turned to leave. There was no point in trying to force the conversation her way when it was clear she was behaving like a spoiled child this entire time. She could try to talk with Mihoko on another day, if the girl was still willing.

"Ueno-san... Congratulations."

Mihoko's voice was clear, if a little quiet. Hisa turned to look back at her, barely catching the receding sad smile on the blonde's face before her younger companion began urging her to leave as well. The hostility in Kana's eyes was unmistakable, and it was perhaps lucky for everyone involved that Mihoko was who she was, otherwise the other two would have verbally taken bites out of each other until one of them was too shamed to continue. Pride was everything, after all. Stubborn, stubborn pride. Her family's pride. Had she erred in defending it?

Hisa turned back once more after a quick nod. Her throat had closed up and she wasn't sure if it was the frustration, anxiety, anger, loneliness, or shame that had caused it. She couldn't even thank her properly. A nod would have to do.

She started to walk back to her team's waiting room. The sounds of the retreating footsteps of the other two girls echoed behind her, going in the opposite direction. Kana was quietly fussing over the Kazekoshi captain, choosing her words carefully as to avoid making the blonde cry in guilt. Hisa grinned a little to herself as she heard Mihoko's overly concerned responses. She missed talking to the girl, and even if it had been awkward and nothing was really said, even if it felt as if they were on entirely opposite sides of an unbridgeable chasm, it was still good to see Mihoko again.

The nostalgically painful image of the blonde's sad smile was still vividly clear in Hisa's mind as she came within viewing distance of the waiting room. There were suddenly sounds of protest that were suspiciously similar to Mihoko's coming from behind her. She lowered her eyebrows slightly in bemusement and started back towards the voice. The sound of hurried footsteps soon reached her ears, and Mihoko came flying into view.

That in itself was fairly startling, but what really surprised Hisa was the item that the blonde held in her hand. It was her unopened can of iced tea, which she had unintentionally abandoned. It almost made her want to laugh at the ridiculousness of it all. Here she was worried about how to contact the other girl, and a can of iced tea is what brings them together again.

Kana was nowhere in sight. She must have tried to stop Mihoko from returning, and thus was the reason for the blonde's protests earlier, Hisa realized.

Mihoko held out the can within arm's reach of Hisa, smiling hesitantly, and something in the redhead's chest tightened painfully. That was guilt, right? But she had nothing to feel guilty over. She hadn't done anything wrong. So why did she feel so embarassed and indebted to the girl? It was only iced tea. Why was Mihoko even trying so hard even though Hisa had been anything but nice to her?

"Y-You didn't have to-"

Hisa had planned to be coolly dismissive, but when she opened her mouth, apologetic words tumbled over one another in an attempt to get her feelings across.

"I wanted to!" Mihoko cut in, blushing in mortified embarassment immediately afterwards. She took a deep breath and repeated herself more self-consciously. "I-I wanted to. Ueno-sa- no, I-I mean, Takei-san, it's important to have sugar after all of your hard work today."

The Kiyosumi leader smiled at the other girl's typical bashfulness – Mihoko couldn't meet her eyes after her outburst. It was almost as if nothing had changed between them and they were back at her own house with the blonde reacting to one of Hisa's jokes. She sobered quickly enough at the mention of her current name, however.

"I... Well, thank you," she replied awkwardly. "I guess." She took the can and turned it over in her hands. They were still avoiding the real issue.

Her last sentence seemed to take away what little cheeriness Mihoko had, and Hisa visibly winced at seeing the other girl's flinch and lowered shoulders. She wanted to hit herself for being so careless with her words. The feeling in her chest intensified. Guilt isn't supposed to hurt this badly, right?

"Please l-let me make it up to you! Everything... I'll take responsibility for it all!" Mihoko bowed stiffly, angling her upper body almost parallel with the floor.

Hisa wanted to put her arms around the girl and tell her that everything would be alright. It was clear the Kazekoshi captain had been suffering, and she hated to see the blonde hurt, but she couldn't let her emotions run away with her. She opened her mouth to say something, but found it dry, and closed it again, trying to swallow her speechlessness.

The door suddenly opened behind her and Mako popped her head out, curious at the noise outside the waiting room.

"Is everything all right, buchou?"

Both Hisa and Mihoko jumped and guiltily looked at one another before facing Mako, who blinked at having a pair and a half of intense eyes staring back at her.

"Uh, sorry for interrupting," Mako said slowly, unsure of what was going on and moving to close the door again.

"I'm sorry for disturbing you! Please excuse me."

Mihoko bowed again and quickly retreated, apparently losing her nerve. Hisa stared after her, dumbfounded, then started as she remembered that Mako was still there. She composed herself and donned her customary grin.

"Well, that was interesting."

Mako said wryly, "You're supposed to chase after her."

"You really think so?" She raised a skeptical eyebrow.

"When you get to be my age, you start to pick up on these things," Mako nodded to herself knowingly. "But buchou knows best, so I'll leave it to you."

Hisa suppressed the urge to shake her head at her friend's idiosyncracy. She fought with what to do for a moment before deciding to follow Mako's advice.

"Honestly, I can't leave that girl alone. She'll probably get lost or something," she stated, forcing her voice to sound light. The Kiyosumi leader passed her can to her friend. "Hold this for me, will you?"

"Okay. When will you be back? You can probably still catch the second half of Nodoka's match."

Hisa grinned. "I'm not worried. Our first years can play better than we can. I trust them to make it through just fine."

Mako shook her head in amusement. "Is that really something our team leader should be saying?"

"Of course. I said it, didn't I? There's nothing wrong with that." But Hisa was itching to go after Mihoko and quickly ended their exchange, walking in the direction that the other girl had went.

Once she was out of Mako's line of sight, she started running, frantically turning her head for any flash of blonde hair. First she had to find the girl, and then after... after... maybe she should apologize. There were better ways of dealing with this, and she hadn't been fair in her judgment. Friendship, loneliness, family... she wanted to live in the present, enjoying every moment. She hated being trapped by anything, least of all her past. Wasn't she already paying for it with her future? But there were worse fates than being married to a man whom she didn't love... Either way, she didn't want to give up her present happiness. It was time she stopped relying on hell waits.

As she turned a corner, Hisa found the Kazekoshi captain facing away from her, crying in Kana's arms. The younger girl seemed almost scared to put her arms around Mihoko, but managed to do so, comforting the tearful girl with soothing noises. Kana nearly missed Hisa's entrance, but easily compensated it with the burning glare she sent over Mihoko's shoulder.

The redhead viewed the scene in front of her with barely concealed jealousy. Consoling the blonde was _her_ responsibility, not this brat's! The younger girl probably didn't even know why Mihoko was upset to begin with, while Hisa comprehended perfectly and knew exactly how to fix things. She had no right to lay her hands on the blonde.

But even as those thoughts raced through her mind, she also knew that she was the one who put Mihoko in such an awkward position, and she was the one who cast the girl out of her house and put their friendship in danger. This was no time to be jealous, and even she could see that the girl would need someone to be sympathetic to her plight, even if that someone had no idea what was going on. A shoulder to cry on was hardly something she should be jealous of. At least Hisa had enough confidence in her understanding of Mihoko to know that the other girl wouldn't say a word of this to anyone until she could make amends for her perceived wrongs.

Mihoko's sobs slowed until barely a hiccup remained, and she stood up straight, apologizing profusely to Kana for the inconvenience. The younger girl was forced to break her warning eyes away from Hisa and turned instead to her captain to reassure her that she didn't mind in the slightest. The redhead took this as her cue to walk to them and did so.

"Mihoko-san, I'm sorry for my behavior this past week. It was... unfair of me," she managed to spit out. Apologies were never easy for her. At least not the serious ones.

Kana looked at her appraisingly, as if she had morphed into an entirely different creature before her eyes. Hisa gave her a flat look, but held her tongue. Why did that little girl irritate her so much? Normally she handled people like her with ease, but this one managed to get under her skin within seconds of eyesight. It was an impressive ability, and not one she particularly relished.

Mihoko, however, had stepped forward towards Hisa, hands once again clasped to her chest.

"Takei-san, you're very kind, but this was entirely my fault. Please let me take responsibility for it."

Kana looked between the two of the older girls and frowned. It was clear that something had happened, but an actual explanation didn't seem to be forthcoming. Furthermore, it would be rude of her to stay any longer when it was clear this was none of her business. It frustrated her, but the proper thing to do was to leave her captain in the hands of the Kiyosumi leader.

"Captain, I'll head back to the others. Please be careful."

Her last words were accompanied by a heated look and were directed more towards Hisa than Mihoko. The two third years nodded their heads in understanding, and the blonde sent a grateful smile towards the diminutive Kazekoshi second year. She scurried off happily, burning the image of that smile into her memory.

With Kana gone, Hisa could focus on the girl in front of her without any distractions. She stepped forward, bridging the gap between them and slowly placed a hand on the other girl's shoulder. Mihoko had ducked her head when she came closer, so the redhead had to lower her own head slightly and pressed forward so that their foreheads were touching in order to force their eyes to meet. She really did miss those eyes of hers. If only she would open both of them.

"Hey. Are you alright? It's okay. I'm not angry anymore."

She smiled as if to prove her point and was surprised to find how sincere her words actually were. It was true; she wasn't angry at all. Hisa felt happy more than anything else. She had finally jumped over the chasm that she had created between them. Now she just had to make sure that they never came near it again.

"But Takei-san, there must be something I can do to mitigate the damage that I've caused you and your family! You're an important person to me, so I can't just accept your kindness. I'm indebted to you," Mihoko explained in a rush, her face flush.

It seemed as if she was on the verge of tears again, and Hisa gave in to the urge to hug her close, surprising Mihoko enough that she inhaled sharply at the movement. Pale arms clutched at the redhead's sides loosely, the blonde's entire frame shaking. Hisa's heart clenched at this. All the pain that the other girl had gone through was entirely her fault. She was the villain here, not Mihoko.

"It's okay," she repeated into a wave of blonde hair, reveling in its softness. "Well, actually," she changed her mind with a twinkle in her eye, which the other girl couldn't see, "there _is_ something you can do."

The body in Hisa's arms stopped their shaking and the redhead held it her out at arm's length, grinning all the while. Mihoko's eye was fearful, and she regretted causing it, but the end result would be worth it, she reasoned.

"As punishment, I sentence you to be my friend for the rest of our high school term, and to keep in touch with me after we both graduate. Is that suitable?"

"T-Takei-san!" Mihoko exclaimed, half in exasperation and half in happiness.

Hisa winked at her. Things were back to normal, and what a wonderful normality it was.


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N:** Somehow this feels like a filler chapter. Someone please tell me if I've created a plot hole somewhere, or I'm somehow repeating something. This story is bigger than I realized.

* * *

Kana perked up visibly as she saw Mihoko return from her private talk with Hisa. The second year had been waiting patiently outside the public viewing rooms, and the blonde smiled as she caught sight of her teammate's familiar cat-like smile.

"Captain! I'm glad you're back," the younger girl said simply, beaming.

Mihoko nodded slightly. "I must have worried you, Kana-chan. I'm sorry."

"You really don't have to apologize so much, Captain. We'll support you with everything, even if it's not mahjong. You're important to us."

The sincerity of her words struck the Kazekoshi captain, and once again she felt truly blessed to have such a wonderful team around her. It was tempting to tear up again in unworthiness, but the memory of Hisa's forgiveness and the grinning face she used to chastise Mihoko was still fresh in her mind's eye. It was hard to feel particularly down about anything after that, so she merely smiled gratefully and dipped her head in thanks.

"Ah, Captain, you're back! We're in the second _hanchan_ of Haramura-san's match, and her playing style hasn't changed much since we first played with her," Bundou supplied helpfully.

"Thank you, Bundou-san," Mihoko smiled and took a seat between two of her teammates, already changing gears to focus on mahjong. After all, the singles national tournament was next week, and she couldn't let herself be caught off-guard. She should be as well-prepared as she can, especially with her electronic handicap. Asking her friends or family to help her was out of the question. Her mahjong abilities were the one thing she could place her pride in, and she wasn't going to cheapen her self-worth by taking advantage of the kindness of others.

The day of the national singles tournament came quickly for Mihoko. The rest of the week after the team tournament had been mostly a blur, filled with looking over playing records and enjoying her remaining vacation with her mother and Naoko. She had wanted to spend time with Hisa, but Kiyosumi classes resumed a week earlier than Kazekoshi, and the redhead was busy with student congress work. It was a little enviable, she supposed. Hisa was always right in the middle of things, forming her world the way she saw fit. Mihoko wished she could do that, but she was better off just supporting everyone to the best of her abilities.

* * *

"I can't believe your parents couldn't make it today. I mean, it's not everyday that your daughter plays mahjong nationally, right?" Naoko crossed her arms in annoyance.

"Ah, that's not quite true, Naoko-san. They said they'd try to make it. In any case, there's still the preliminaries to go through, and I can't be confident that I'll pass those," Mihoko stated reasonably.

"Oh, don't be modest. What's the point in coming if you're not going to aim for the top? Everyone's counting on you. That girl, too, even though she's probably biased towards her teammates."

Mihoko blushed slightly. "That's certainly true. I'll do my best."

Naoko looked up at the imposing building in front of them. "Well, here we are. I can't believe I'm actually here to watch mahjong..."

Mihoko looked at her friend and shook her head in amused exasperation. "You don't have to force yourself. If you'd like, Naoko-san, we can just meet up at the hotel later, and you can wander around the city until then."

The bespectacled girl whipped around to face the blonde, eyes burning with a manic light. "Are you kidding me?! I won't be able to raise all the flags and reach 100% completion if I miss this event! You've got to be kidding me!"

As usual, Mihoko had no idea what her friend was talking about, but she nodded her head anyway and led the way inside the bustling building. It was filled with a few familiar faces that she had recognized from the team tournament, but most of them were new. Perhaps many weren't able to participate in the team tournaments, despite having the talent to do so. She felt a little sad for them, as she knew how lonely it was to play alone.

"Captain!"

"Captain!"

"We'll be cheering for you!"

"Do your best!"

"Good luck!"

"Mihoko-neechan! Don't lose to them!"

Naoko laughed as Mihoko looked around frantically. "Looks like your cult is here."

"I'd say that sounds about right," a familiar voice commented in amusement from their right.

The Kazekoshi captain smiled happily in recognition. "T-Takei-san!"

"Hey, don't sound so surprised. My teammates are here to win, you know," Hisa winked, motioning behind her to where Saki and Nodoka were talking to each other quietly. "Don't underestimate them, or you'll get hurt, and I don't want to see you hurt."

"T-Takei-san, you shouldn't say such things in public," Mihoko mumbled in mortified embarrassment.

Hisa raised an eyebrow. "Oh? So in private it's fine to say anything, right?"

Naoko shook her head and stepped between them. "Yes, yes, that's all very nice, but let's not mess with my friend's nerves before she plays, all right?"

"Sorry, I couldn't help it," Hisa apologized with unconvincing sincerity. It was mostly her grin that threw it off, but the blonde knew she wouldn't have her be any other way.

"In any case, why don't we all sit over there? It's better than having to look for separate unoccupied spots in this crowded mess," the Kiyosumi leader suggested.

"That's a good idea, _buchou_," Mako agreed, stepping out from behind the redhead. She looked between the two Kazekoshi students. "Either of you disagree?"

"Sounds good to me," Naoko nodded.

"We'll be in your care," Mihoko bowed formally.

Hisa laughed. "I hope not. If that were true. It think our little first years would break you, and we can't have that, can we?"

"Oh? You sound pretty cocky for a girl who couldn't even make it to nationals," Naoko retorted.

"But we did," the Kiyosumi leader stated with exaggerated wide-eyed astonishment. "Didn't you see? We won the national team tournament."

"Stop purposely misunderstanding and changing the subject," the other snapped.

Mako rubbed the back of her neck nervously and glanced at Mihoko. "Sorry about this. She's always picking fights wherever she goes."

"No, no, it's not your fault at all! My friend's a little too honest, so she can't help but say such things."

"We're still here, you know."

"Ah, that's not fair. I wish I had someone as pretty as you to apologize for me, too."

Mako placed an unopened cold can of iced tea at the back of Hisa's neck, making the other girl jump away in surprise. "What was that, _buchou_? Saying I'm ugly now?"

"Ah, don't be like that. I'm just saying you're... ah... actually, now that you mention it... Ack! I'm kidding, kidding! What happened to respecting your club president, huh?"

"Liars don't deserve any respect," Yuuki stated sagely, walking back from the food court with a bag of tacos. She looked at the two Kazekoshi students. "Want a taco?"

Mihoko shook her head. "No thank you, we ju-"

"Good! You're not allowed to have any. The Kind of Tacos would be angry if you did. However! Since you were nice to me back then, I can slip you one if you ask nicely."

Mihoko blinked. This girl hadn't changed much since the prefectural team tournament. She was still as strange as she was back then, if essentially a good person. Then again, she supposed that description could be used to describe the entire Kiyosumi team.

"Yuuki, you should apologize." Hisa smiled, but her tone almost seemed to be threatening the younger girl.

"Ha! I don't need to listen to a liar!"

"No, really. You should apologize. Or maybe we should spend more time with those math problems?"

The smile never left the redhead's face, but Yuuki instantly cowered and apologized formally to the blonde, who waved it off politely. So that was how the redhead maintained order within the group. Blackmail and coercion. It wasn't a bad tactic, but she couldn't see herself using it at all. Before she could go any further in her train of thought, she felt a warm hand placed above her head.

"Hey. I'll be watching you today."

Mihoko blinked and looked behind her, only to meet Coach Kubo's serious expression. She smiled at this public display of affection and support, even if most people wouldn't see it that way.

"Thank you, Coach Kubo."

"Hm. I have other people to see right now, but don't disappoint me when the time comes."

"Of course."

Naoko grabbed Mihoko's arm as the older woman walked away. "H-Hey. Wasn't that Kubo? She was practically behaving like an angel there!"

"Naoko-san, that's a little unfair. She's just under a lot of stress, you know," Mihoko defended .

"If you say so... Anyway, the matches are about to start. You better prepare yourself." Her friend patted her on the back and pushed her towards the game rooms.

"R-Right! Everyone, I'll meet you back here after the break!"

"Saki, Nodoka, you two should hurry along, too. Stop staring at each other or you'll trip."

Mihoko could hear Hisa cautioning her teammates before calling out to the three of them, "I'm looking forward to seeing some interesting matches from all of you. You better reach the finals or else!"

Did the last part include her, she wondered? Well, she couldn't look back now. She had to focus on the preliminaries.

* * *

"It looks like Miyanaga Teru's reached the semifinals, too. We better watch out for her," Mihoko advised the Kiyosumi semifinalists as their group sat together on two benches.

"But you're really amazing, Fukuji-san! You defeated that girl who took all of Mako-sempai's points at the team tournament!" Saki exclaimed.

The green-haired second year buried her face in her hands. "Ugh, don't remind me of her, please."

"It's true, though," Nodoka agreed, taking a sip of her pineapple juice. "Your analysis of people you face off against are frighteningly accurate. It's like you can see exactly what they're holding and what they plan to do, but that can't be true."

"Ah, thank you everyone. I just spend too much time looking over records. They're quite helpful. If you ask me, you two are the amazing ones. You've both managed to get this far on your first try,' Mihoko complimented them.

"Your parents are here," Naoko stated plainly.

"Wha-?"

"Mihoko-chan! We're so sorry we're late! Did we miss much?" Satoru ruffled his daughter's hair affectionately as his wife came to stand beside him.

"Your father mixed up which trains we were supposed to take. Can you believe that, even though he works in this city?"

"Hey, that's not fair! My office is on the other side of the city. I don't have time to go gallivanting around while my poor employees are stuck working."

Naoko smirked. "They're as lively as ever."

Mihoko couldn't help but agree. She made quick introductions to everyone, with Hisa and Masuyo sharing a wink that made the blonde blush. No doubt they were thinking of something unfair about her again.

"We've reached the semifinals, and it starts in about ten more minutes," Mihoko explained shortly, smiling up at her father and hugging her mother.

"Kids these days are pretty precocious, aren't they?" Mako asked Satoru with an understanding smile.

"Ah, yes." He blinked at hearing such an adult-like comment coming from someone who was his daughter's age.

Hisa sighed. "Let's try to not be weird in front of Mihoko-san's parents, okay everyone?"

"I don't want to hear that from you," Naoko retorted predictably.

"My, my, you're all so lively. Well, we won't bother you any longer. We just came by to see how you were doing and let you know we're watching. I also brought some food, but your father ate it all on the way here," Masuyo explained regrettably.

He laughed nervously. "Oh, don't listen to her. She's lying. They're right here," he said, bringing out a basket he had placed on the floor.

While everyone dug in, he whispered quietly to Mihoko, "I only ate a few bites, but most of it should be there. Your mother ate more than I did."

She giggled quietly. "Oh, father."

Masuyo glanced at her husband, frowning slightly. "I think I heard a bit of slander about me. Was it you, dear?"

"Of course not. Whatever are you talking about? In any case, I'm sure Mihoko-chan and her friends are busy. We should let them prepare."

"Thank you very much, Fukuji-niichan!" The Kiyosumi group chimed while Naoko and Mihoko bowed their thanks.

"-niichan, huh? That makes an old man like me happy to hear that."

"Don't let it get to your head," Masuyo warned as they walked away.

Mihoko looked up from her food to smile at Saki and Nodoka. "Let's do our best, okay? I hope to see us all at the finals."

"It's a promise," the other two agreed.

* * *

"That was... pretty bad, no matter how you look at it," Naoko remarked as two of the three players returned from their semifinal matches, defeated.

Nodoka could only clench her fist and stare at the floor in disappointment while Mihoko placed a comforting hand on the pink-haired girl's shoulder. The Kazekoshi captain knew what it was like to get so far, only to have everything taken right from underneath your feet. Kazekoshi had been defeated two years in a row by Ryuumonbuchi, and once by Kiyosumi, after all. She was all too used to comforting her juniors.

Saki was still in one of the game rooms, finishing the final round of her semifinal match. If she won, it meant that she'd go on to face off against Teru, who had barely managed to win against Mihoko. The latter two had been taking points off of each other up until the final round, when Teru managed a cheap tsumo, which stole meager points off of everyone. It didn't amount to much, but it was enough to make up the difference between their two scores.

Nodoka's main opponent during her semifinal match, however, was nothing like that. She kept bringing on tsumo after tsumo. It was all the Kiyosumi star could do to end that girl's dealer round before she brought everyone's score below zero. Nodoka only managed second place, but those were by quick wins against the other two players, who were also scrambling to get their hands together before the biggest threat of the table could get another self-drawn win. It was a fairly humiliating defeat no matter how you looked at it. No wonder she looked crushed.

Hisa walked up to the both of them with two warm drinks, which they accepted gratefully.

"Good job, both of you. If you need to cry, you should do it now before she comes back."

They all knew this was directed at Nodoka, who quickly wiped at her face with her sleeve while everyone else pretended to look away. Mihoko met Hisa's gaze from above Nodoka's bowed head, and she was surprised at how much warmth and understanding she found.

She knew the Kiyosumi leader was there mainly for her teammates, but to give just as much consideration and compassion to her was unexpected. A crush is just a crush, but it seems there was much more to the redhead than just smooth lines and pride. She didn't want to think of what that meant before, back when she was forgiven at the last tournament. It was all she could do not to burst from happiness, let alone think about what had changed between them. But now she could feel her face heat up from something other than embarrassment, or rather, embarrassment of an entirely different kind. This felt completely different from adoration. She felt like Hisa's eyes could see something in her that no one should ever know about, and the blonde hastily broke their eye contact. She felt dirty somehow.

"Mihoko-chan, are you okay? Maybe you should sit down. You look a little pale."

Naoko gently guided her friend to one of the benches that they were using. She took the warm can from her friend's hand and quickly pulled the tab open, handing it back to her.

"You should drink it. Some heat and sugar should calm you. I'm surprised Takei even knows that much."

Hisa seemed a little dazed and could only mumble a faint agreement. The bespectacled girl looked at her oddly but chose to focus on her friend.

"You look a little sick. Maybe that match was more of a shock than I thought. You don't have to force yourself to be the best every time, you know," Naoko reassured her.

That wasn't the problem, Mihoko wanted to explain, but how could she when she didn't even know what was wrong herself? She glanced furtively at Hisa, only to find the Kiyosumi leader's eyes already on her. Mihoko forced out a smile, pushing away her sudden thoughts of shame and disgust, trying to convince the other girl that she was fine.

"Takei-san, I think Haramura-san needs your support more than I do at the moment. I've done all that I could and I have no regrets, but I think she still has to deal with her own disappointment. Please don't let her down."

"I see," she replied vaguely, turning back to take care of her junior.

What was she saying? Hisa didn't need her to tell her what to do. This wasn't helping at all!

Naoko took a quick look at Hisa's back before scrutinizing Mihoko's face for a long moment. Her brows furrowed before eventually evening out in understanding.

"Ah. It really looks like you are sick," she stated quietly before facing the rest of the group. "It's been fun guys, but I think Mihoko-chan needs a bit of rest. She didn't sleep much last night out of excitement, and I think it's finally catching up to her."

What was Naoko talking about? She slept at the usual time last night. She had just as much sleep as she normally did. She wasn't sick at all! Why was Naoko lying for her?

"Huh? You're leaving already?" Saki asked, finally returning from her semifinal match.

"Saki-san!" Nodoka cried, running into Saki's arms. "I'm sorry; I broke our promise!"

"Ah, Nodoka-chan. It's okay. We both tried our best. There, there."

Mihoko stood up to talk to Saki. "I also apologize. I couldn't keep our promise, either. I wish you the best of luck against your sister and the other finalists."

"I-It's okay!" Saki hurried to assure them. "I'm glad we all made it this far, anyway. It was really fun!"

"That's right," Mako agreed.

"Don't underestimate the power of friendship!" Yuuki declared.

"Says the girl who abuses her friendships just for more tacos," Keitaro grumbled.

"Eh? You were here?" Hisa asked in faint interest.

"Don't say that when you're the one who sent me to go buy things!"

"Well, get better soon, Mihoko-san," Hisa said, completely ignoring the only male member of her mahjong club. "You should stop by our school. We've got a festival coming up, and I'm sure you'd enjoy it."

Mihoko pretended not to notice the questioning look that the other girl gave her and merely agreed politely. Naoko was right; she needed to leave soon. She didn't feel well at all.

"Goodbye everyone, and I'll be watching your final match, Miyanaga-san."

The two made their way to the exit without a word passed between them until they reached the outside.

Naoko glanced at her in concern. "It's not something you should feel bad about, you know."

"It's really nothing to worry about, Naoko-san," she assured her friend. "I think my stomach's just disagreeing with the hotel food from this morning."

Her roommate frowned, unconvinced. "If you say so. I'm always here to listen to what's on your mind. Well, there's always your cult for that, too," she joked.

Mihoko cracked a smile at that. "Yes, I suppose you're right. Thank you."

"It's the power of friendship. That little shrimp was right. You shouldn't underestimate it."


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N:** Thank you for all of the support.

* * *

Kazekoshi's summer vacation had ended much too soon for many of the students, but Mihoko felt that she had been idle and away from school for long enough. She scarcely had a day to pull herself together before classes began, and she still felt fairly irritated with herself. It was as if she wanted the Kiyosumi leader all to herself, but that was nonsense. Friends don't think of their friends in that way, and they most especially did not want to treat them like an obsession.

And Mihoko did obsess. She felt envy at the other Kiyosumi students for attending the same school as Hisa, for being in the same club as Hisa, for being able to see her smile everyday and have her praise and watch them grow. She envied them for their time, which she could not easily replicate. She envied, and she hated herself for it. The churning in her stomach only seemed to grow worse, as if a lead ball was slowly circling inside. It didn't help her frustrations any.

Fortunately, news seemed to have spread fast at Kazekoshi, and she wasn't given the luxury of having enough time for self-loathing. It was as if she had become a minor celebrity overnight.

"Fukuji-san! I heard that you reached the semifinals of some national tournament last week! Congratulations!"

The girl's friend elbowed her in the side. "_Some national tournament?_ It was a mahjong tournament, stupid. I can't believe we're in the same school."

"Ow! Whatever. It was still pretty amazing. I heard my grandfather talk about it all weekend, but that's probably because you're so pretty, Fukuji-san."

"I heard you beat out everyone from Ryuumonbuchi to compete in last week's tournament. You could probably take them all on at once!"

"Yeah, but what does that say about the rest of our mahjong team? Aren't we supposed to be the number one school for mahjong players?"

"Hey, aren't you in the Mahjong Club, too? Is that something you should be saying as a devoted member?"

Mihoko smiled at her classmates and thanked them graciously. Even if she still felt wretched inside, it was good to be reminded that she did manage to walk away last week with more than defeat. At least her school wasn't disappointed in her like she expected them to be.

Classes passed by much as usual, with a few students coming in during breaks and lunch to congratulate her. Curiously, none of her teammates stopped by. Perhaps they were busy. She couldn't expect them to always put aside time just to stroke her ego. She hardly deserved their respect to begin with. Even so, it was hard for her to take her schoolmates' compliments too seriously. A part of her wished she could have gotten farther, even if it was irrational to think so.

Mahjong... just what was she fighting for? She couldn't even look Hisa in the face anymore.

* * *

As Mihoko walked through one of the hallways that led to the Mahjong Club, she noticed that Kubo was standing outside the entrance, talking on her mobile phone. That wasn't unusual in and of itself, but the woman ended the call almost the moment she caught sight of the girl.

"Third place, and you left before it ended," she stated neutrally.

Mihoko couldn't tell if she was angry or disappointed, or completely apathetic. She wasn't sure which option she most preferred, but nodded and agreed politely.

The woman fixed Mihoko with a hardened gaze. "Disregarding the fact that you would have been much better off watching the final match to see where precisely your strategy had failed, I-" her voice broke off and she looked away abruptly.

"Coach, are you all right?" The younger of the two stepped forward reflexively and placed a hand on Kubo's arm in concern.

Kubo firmly pulled her arm free and frowned at her, intent on ignoring the incident.

"I'm proud of you."

Mihoko stared in shock for a moment before her face broke out into a smile. She bowed deeply.

"Thank you very much for all of your guidance, Coach Kubo."

The woman only frowned even more deeply. "Don't smile like that. You still have a lot to learn. And why were you with Kiyosumi?"

The sudden change in topic would have thrown Mihoko off-balance, if it were not for the fact that Kiyosumi had been on her mind this whole time. More specifically, she wasn't able to keep a certain redhead out of her mind even if she wanted to, and she wasn't entirely sure that she did.

The blonde lowered her brows slightly, feeling defensive despite everything. "You didn't object during the tournament, so why bring this up now?"

Kubo's eye twitched in irritation, and it seemed as if she was on the verge of physically attacking Mihoko. The girl steeled herself for the blow, but she kept her shoulders straight and her eyes firmly locked on the woman's face. She was feeling bad enough about Hisa without having her coach criticize her spending time with them. It was the last thing she wanted, and she had no intention of back down, even if she _was_ lashing out at the wrong person.

"Even I know enough not to disturb someone before their match," Kubo responded stiffly, restraining herself.

Mihoko blinked at the rare display of self-control, and was inwardly disappointed. She had been itching for a fight, and it shamed her to realize that. What happened to her? It was as if she had become an entirely different person; acting more like Kubo of the past than the woman herself. It almost made her want to smile in irony as she thought of that.

"I..." The girl swallowed her pride awkwardly as her face was threatening to burst in shame. "Thank you. I'm sorry."

"It's fine, now will you answer my question?" The older blonde sighed, another rare sight, and closed her eyes in thought. She rubbed the bridge of her nose in mild annoyance while she waited.

"Ah," she stumbled, forgetting herself in the face of her emotions. She was used to being emotional, but never at the expense of her self-awareness.

"I was invited by their club president," she explained simply.

"Do you think that had an effect on your mahjong?" Kubo asked disapprovingly.

That explained why the woman wasn't angry at her for only reaching third place. She was laying the blame on Kiyosumi. It made sense, in a way, but it was also an uncharacteristic way of thinking for the woman. She never looked at external reasons, and always laid the blame at what she believed to be the root of the problem: the players themselves.

"No, I don't believe so," she disagreed calmly, her mind already adjusting itself to focus on everything except the dark angry thoughts at the back of her head. "It was easier for me to focus during the match after spending time with them."

"You were relaxed, then," Kubo rephrased her explanation. "Stress helps your mind and body deal with your problems. You let your guard down."

Mihoko was preparing herself for anger, apathy, disgust, or even acceptance, but not disappointment. The older woman's quiet uttering of her last sentence struck a chord in Mihoko, silencing all of her other pitiful thoughts. Coach Kubo was right; she had let her guard down, in more ways than one. With all of her promises of doing her best, supporting everyone, and maintaining her pride as a mahjong player, it was laughable that she disregarded all of them the instant she let herself laugh together with Hisa that day. Playing for "fun" shouldn't have been a priority for her. She had forgotten what it meant to be part of the Kazekoshi mahjong team, and what she represented as its captain.

There was nothing she could say to her coach, of course. Excuses wouldn't change anything. Mihoko bowed deeply and apologized once more.

"That's a nice sentiment, but you still failed. The next time you feel lonely before a match, come to me instead of those chits at Kiyosumi. I would have made sure you were prepared."

"'Next time'?" Mihoko echoed in bemusement. The only tournament they attended had already finished, and this was her last year at Kazekoshi. Her offer didn't make sense, even if she was serious. She couldn't be serious – Kubo never coddled her students.

"If you don't play mahjong in university, I'll make sure you regret it," her coach threatened by way of explanation.

"Th-Thank you," she bowed quickly, unsure whether she should feel flattered or frightened. It seemed that Kubo had taken a special interest in her as a player. She didn't think the woman thought very highly of any of them, least of all herself, the girl who had failed.

Kana chose that moment to burst out of the club room excitedly. Her eyes lit up when she saw her captain, but quickly widened in fear as she realized Kubo was also present. Mihoko smiled ruefully at the sight. She doubted the woman would do anything to Kana, as none of the rest of the club had done anything to earn her ire lately. At least, she hoped they didn't.

"What, are you finished already? Get back in there!" The woman barked.

"R-Right away!" Kana replied, scrambling to get back inside.

"What are they doing?" The younger of the two blondes asked curiously, confident that the tension between them had been broken.

"They're working hard, or at least, they should be," Kubo grumbled.

Mihoko found that strange. They usually had the day off after a tournament from doing drills. It was spent replaying the matches at the tournament and analyzing them. It was hardly what she would call "hard work", and Kubo thought the same. She wondered if the woman was punishing them for her failure at the tournament this weekend. She sincerely hoped not, or she'd have to talk to Kubo again. It wasn't something she'd look forward to, after today.

"I'll head in, then," she said, opening the door.

She was greeted with an explosion of streamers and firecrackers. A large banner in the middle of the room said, '_Congratulations Captain!' _in bold colorful letters. There was a large cake in the center of the room, which had been decorated with tile-shaped icing and candles. The other members of the club were wearing party hats and congratulating her almost simultaneously.

Mihoko's first thought was that their coach would kill them for doing this. Her second thought was that she really didn't deserve this. Her third thought was that she was truly lucky to be part of such a wonderful group. Her fourth thought was that she wished Hisa could be here with her.

"You're only young once," Kubo stated from the behind her.

* * *

Due to the sheer number of people that the Kazekoshi mahjong club contained, drinks and snacks inevitably ran out as the afternoon passed into the night. Kana had volunteered to go out for more, and so did Mihoko. Of course, everyone attempted to dissuade the captain, so much that Kubo eventually told the two to just get out to stop the mild arguing between the girls.

"Thank you for allowing me to come with you, Kana-chan," she smiled as they walked out of the building together.

"Ah, that's n-not a problem, Captain!" The younger girl replied energetically, her face blushing slightly.

"How are your sisters doing?" Mihoko asked curiously. "Will they be all right tonight?"

"Uncle's taking care of them right now," Kana explained. "He's just returned from overseas, so he's probably telling them silly stories. I hope they're behaving..."

"Ah, I'm sorry Kana-chan! It's because of my party that you can't stay with your sisters," Mihoko realized with dismay.

"Ca-Captain!" Kana cried in alarm at her sudden tears. "It's okay, really! It's not like it's the first time I've come home late, and I've always arranged someone to look after them beforehand. They're probably having the time of their lives right now; please don't worry."

"Are you sure? We can always stop by on the way back," the blonde offered uncertainly.

"Yes, yes, it's fine. You shouldn't worry about other people so much. We're celebrating _you_ today."

"That's true, but still-"

"Say, Captain, what're you planning to do after you graduate?" Kana cut in hurriedly.

Mihoko smiled slightly in amusement. It was clear the other girl was trying hard to made sure she didn't dominate the conversation. Her consideration made the blonde want to hug the younger girl, buts he restrained herself. It was likely that the sugar from the party was making her a little giddy.

"Attend university for business, most likely. What about you, Kana-chan?" She asked with interest.

The younger girl rarely talked about herself, and Mihoko was usually busy helping Kubo with the mahjong club so she rarely had time to talk with the girl. There was also the fact that she was graduating this year, and she wanted to become better friends with the person who would likely become her successor as the club's captain. No, that wasn't quite right. She wanted to get to know this girl who seemed to work so hard when things were already difficult for her to begin with. Especially since Ikeda Kana was the recipient of her father's business scholarship, not that the girl knew it. It offered the student a full scholarship for any high school they were accepted at, provided that they entered his company once they graduated from high school. There were more restrictions and exceptions, of course, but they were barely worth noting.

"Really? That sounds exciting, Captain! Are you going to start your own company?" She asked excitedly.

"Not quite," she replied with amusement. It was hard not to be caught up in the other girl's enthusiasm.

"Well, I'm entering Fukuji Corporation when I graduate. It's nice since they're opening a branch near where I live, so I can still take care of my siblings while I work. University sounds exciting, though," she added cheerfully.

It seemed she didn't make the connection between the company and Mihoko's last name. Well, that was all to the good, even if she did find it amusing.

"Fukuji Corporation? I hear their Research and Development is one of the best as far as the gaming industry is concerned," she commented knowingly.

Kana nodded excitedly. "That's right. I was hoping to work there. Just thinking of all of the things we could build that would make children smile all over the world makes me feel all tingly inside." She laughed in embarrassment. "Well, I'll probably just be an entry-level worker, though. I shouldn't get my hopes up."

"You shouldn't think like that, Kana-chan. I think you'll go far; you certainly deserve it," Mihoko said encouragingly.

Kana blushed red. "Th-Thank you Captain. Ah, wait! What am I saying? We should be talking about you, not me!"

Mihoko giggled. "That's all right. It's not often that I get the chance to talk with you like this."

"That's because you're always doing work that you don't need to, like washing the sheets," the younger girl replied with a small frown. "And it's not like I even stay at the dorms, anyway..."

"If Kana-chan wants me to, I don't mind," she offered with a teasing smile.

"Th-That's not my point, Captain! Did you at least enjoy yourself at the tournament?" She asked seriously.

"Yes, I did," Mihoko answered after a moment of thought. "Thank you for asking."

"Good. If Coach Kubo said anything mean to you just because you didn't get first place, I... I don't know what I'll do, but it won't be nice!" Kana announced determinedly. "Third place at nationals is really, really amazing!"

"Thank you, Kana-chan," Mihoko said sincerely.

She reached out and patted the girl on the head affectionately. Maybe all she needed right now was encouragement herself, and some human warmth. Kana felt like a bridled bundle of energy underneath her fingers. It was comforting, and the girl herself seemed to enjoy it. Maybe she was looking in the wrong place after all.

No, no. She shouldn't take advantage of her friends that way. It would make her an even worse person than she already was. Was she really so greedy?

"Kiyosumi did pretty well last week, didn't they?" Kana asked conversationally. She had no idea what Mihoko had been thinking, of course, but it still made the older girl feel a little guilty.

"Yes, I believe so. I left soon after my match ended, so I wasn't able to see the last game. I assume Miyanaga-san at least reached second place?" She asked. Mihoko had done her best to pretend that Kiyosumi didn't exist the past few days. Obviously it didn't work, but it did leave her ignorant of the final results.

"More like first place," Kana said, shaking her head. "I can't believe I actually played a game with that girl. There are so many great players our age... It makes me really excited to see how next year will turn out. You'll probably go pro, right Captain?"

"Ah, maybe," Mihoko answered thoughtfully, remembering Kubo's unexpected offer earlier that day.

"I'll be your number one fan if you do," the younger girl grinned. "But then," she amended, "that would be true no matter what you chose to do, I think."

"Thank you, Kana-chan," she replied graciously, "but I think you should be your own number one fan, and see how far you can go. I think the other members look up to you, now that I'll be graduating soon. I have faith that you'll become a better leader than I ever was."

"Don't talk like that, Captain! You make it sound like you were a horrible leader and you're going to die tomorrow. You've done so much for us, and you still have half a year left! I'm going to work hard to make you proud of the mahjong club. We're not going to fail you again!"

"Oh, Kana-chan." Mihoko hugged the younger girl impulsively, giving an internal sigh. If only she herself could be so optimistic.

"I-I think I see the store up ahead," Kana suddenly said while in her arms.

Mihoko loosened her arms and looked in the direction where the girl was pointing, but she had already run off towards the building. The blonde thought she saw a bright red face so reminiscent of her own. It made her smile a little sadly. This was the only kindness she could give, since anything more would ruin everything.

* * *

"Your mahjong has become clumsy," Kubo stated across the table they were sharing.

They had gone over the paperwork for the club funds that afternoon in such concentration that dinner was skipped. By the time they realized they were hungry, night had fallen and it was too late for any nearby restaurant to deliver them take-out. The only choice left if they wanted to eat was a convenience store, or a proper restaurant at the outer edges of the city. Kubo unsurprisingly refused to go into a convenience store, and since she was the only one with a car, she decided where to go. What was more surprising was that she took the younger girl with her.

Mihoko lowered her eyebrows in concern. "How so?"

She wasn't aware that she had played enough mahjong in the past week for the other woman to even notice, especially with so many members she could otherwise be focusing on.

The coach seemed to be in the mood to humor her, as she decided to answer rather than shrug off her pointless question.

"Your advice to the other members isn't as thorough as it used to be. You don't point out most of the mistakes anymore; only about half. You were very passive in the one match you played this week, and you're taking interest in absurd tactics that would only work in a fictional world. Do I need to name more or is that enough for you get your act together?" Kubo asked bluntly.

The waiter appeared before she could respond, and placed a leather-bound menu in front of each of them.

"Good evening, ladies. My name is Sunohara, and I'll be taking care of you tonight. May I start you off with something to drink?"

"Red wine, please. I don't care what it is, as long as it's sweet," the older woman ordered.

"Red wine it is," he agreed amiably, then turned to Mihoko. "and you, miss?"

"Unsweetened iced tea, please," she said with a smile.

Father had always said to be nice to those who prepared your food. Of course, she tried to be nice to everyone, but she did see his point. Even if she didn't feel like being particularly nice with her coach right at that moment.

"I'd also like to order the fried calamari to start us off," Kubo added.

He nodded. "Very well. I shall put that in for you. I'll give you a few minutes to look over the menu."

"I'll take care of things properly starting tomorrow," Mihoko replied once the waiter walked away. She didn't ask for an explanation, and if there was one thing she learned from her father's business, it was to never say anything unnecessary.

"Stop that," her coach snapped.

"I don't understand," she said, puzzled.

"Stop acting so impersonal about everything. I can understand being that way with the others, but I've watched over you for nearly three years at this point. I might not have asked why you've been acting distracted lately, but that shouldn't stop you from confiding in me," Kubo ranted in frustration. She continued, "You're still young, surrounded by kids your age. It's fine if you want to act perfect in front of them, but I'm the last person you should put up a facade for. If something is bothering you, it affects how the entire mahjong club runs, which also affects me. At least tell me if there's something I can do."

As the older woman laid bare her thoughts, Mihoko was almost fooled into thinking that Kubo personally cared about her. Of course, that wasn't the case. In the end, it was just the mahjong and how it affected her status. It was becoming increasingly irritating how the woman kept trying to act as if she was obligated to tell her everything. Who was she to demand Mihoko's thoughts and knowledge of her feelings? Why now? When things weren't going well, that's when she started to care, even from just a professional standpoint?

She didn't even bother to contain her cynicism at this point. She had tried to be rational up until today, but Kubo had given her enough of a reason to be angry. Every day this week, the woman had stared at her as if she was waiting for something to happen. She barely spoke to Mihoko, and when she did, she sounded disappointed. How was she supposed to react to that? And suddenly she takes the girl out to dinner, only to criticize her and demand answers in a roundabout way? The woman had never pulled her punches before, so why would she wait this long if she wanted to say something?

Even if she was using the woman as a scapegoat, she certainly deserved it, if anyone deserved anything. She had gone on far too long without receiving any comeuppance for how she's treated everyone at Kazekoshi.

"Coach Kubo, do you truly believe that you have any right to ask that of me? You have made no effort to care for my well-being in the past, and now I'm suddenly supposed to accept that you've had a change of heart? Where was this benevolent attitude when you decided to abuse my fellow members for your own shortcomings? Where was your understanding when they've only done what was humanly possible, yet it still wasn't enough for you? To be quite honest, my duties to you start and end with the Kazekoshi mahjong club. I even consider this dinner to be merely an extension of that, as we didn't have time for it earlier. Don't mistake our relationship for something more casual."

Kubo smirked and leaned back in her chair, unwilling to let this escalate into a shouting match. They were in a public place, after all. She understood the woman's reasons quite well. Neither of them were veiled in complete anonymity, especially after the recent tournament.

"You're still holding grudges. I would've thought that was unlike you, but I suppose I shouldn't assume anything at this point," she said dryly, apparently unsurprised by Mihoko's outburst, quiet as it was.

"However, let me clear up one misconception," she continued with a dangerous smile. "Why do you think I went that far in the first place? For my ego? Status? Insecurity? You're wrong. You're all children in my eyes, and hardly worth proving anything to, with the sole exception of you. From the moment I saw you, I knew you had what it took to take us to victory, to show the nation that Kazekoshi was more than just good teamwork. I pushed everyone because I believed in you. They don't need coddling from me. They can get that from their parents, their friends, hell, they can get it from an old man off the streets for all I care; but I was there for _you_. You were the type of girl that would go far, but only if everyone supported you. I became the bad guy for you. Now, doesn't that make you feel bad?"

Mihoko could only stare at her. "That's... that..."

"Excuse me," the water cut in.

They both turned to him in annoyance, but he was unperturbed by their looks.

"Here are your drinks and your fried calamari. Would you like to place your orders now?"

"I'll just take today's special, no salad or soups," Mihoko quickly responded, not caring what she ate. She didn't even have the chance to look at the menu.

"Same here," Kubo said. Neither did the coach, it seemed.

"Very good. Two roasted lambs with an orange mint glaze, no soups or salads. Will that be all for now?" He asked smoothly.

"Yes, yes," Kubo agreed impatiently, and he left without a word after collecting their menus.

"Try the calamari. It's quite good" the older woman suggested cheerfully. Apparently she enjoyed dropping unbelievable truths over people's heads.

"That can't be true," Mihoko said in disbelief. "But you were always quick to blame us for the smallest mistakes, and thoroughly seemed to enjoy it."

"I never said I was a nice person," she replied easily, taking a few pieces of calamari onto her plate and cutting the larger pieces. "If I wasn't quick to point out everything, then where would you be? Still hugging everyone and telling them it was okay as long as they had fun? That's cute, but hardly efficient. We're Kazekoshi, not a daycare center."

"Don't say that so lightly," the younger girl frowned. Despite everything, she took the woman's advice and tried some of the calamari. It really was tasty. She turned back to the subject at hand. "You could have accomplished that even without using violence and yelling at them."

Kubo chucked darkly. "You're always so reasonable. That's the problem. Even now, you're still trying to find ways to forgive me. If I was any nicer, you wouldn't have gotten as far as you did. Come to think of it, maybe I should have threatened you more before the tournament last week. You might have gotten first."

"What a morbid way of thinking," Mihoko replied without hesitation, then blushed as she realized what she had said.

Thankfully, Kubo only found it amusing rather than offensive. "You're much better when you're honest. I've always been honest with my feelings, if not my intentions. It's much less stressful."

The younger girl wasn't sure if she should be relieved at the lack of tension between them now, or frightened. She was leaning towards the latter at the moment, if only because she couldn't wrap her mind around a casual Kubo, sitting and chuckling as she ate her food. Especially not with her, the girl who had just finished lecturing her on where she had gone wrong. It made Mihoko want to hide under her bedsheets for eternity. Nothing was going right in her world. Everything was turning upside down and it was just not what she wanted to deal with right now.

"Your feelings have never ruined everything?" She asked in quiet curiosity, deciding that she might as well take advantage of this opportunity. The Kubo in front of her right now didn't seem to care about anything at all.

"Not to the point where I couldn't build it back up to where I want it to be. I've never regretted anything, though. Just make sure it doesn't involve money, and you'll be fine. Although, there were times that I managed to win quite a bit of money off of horse racing after placing a bet on a hunch. It's up to you," she answered carelessly.

Mihoko wanted to sigh at hearing that. First the woman makes her get worked up, and when she finally does what was asked of her, she's given vague advice. Well, that was what she deserved after asking a vague question. She didn't feel like saying anything more personal after that.

"I don't care about your father or his company, by the way, don't start over-thinking things. It's exactly as I've said. I'm interested in seeing you go far," Kubo said plainly, sipping at her wine.

She closed her eyes wearily. This week was too much. "Would it be polite for me to ask why?"

"No, I don't think it would," she smirked. "I'll be sure to tell you when you're older, though."

"You sound confident that we'll still be in touch."

"Do I ever sound otherwise?" Kubo asked.

At that moment, Mihoko was terrified by how much Kubo resembled Hisa. It was the same easy self-confidence, the same smirk, the same questionable morality, the same sadistic streak, and the exact same unexpected bursts of compassion. It was the absolute last thing she wanted to deal with right now.


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N:** Thank you so, so very much for your patience and dedication with Fireflies. Re-reading your reviews really helped me get re-inspired. My livejournal has extended author's notes. Please enjoy!

* * *

"Stand!"

A chorus of chairs scraped against the floor as students all around the building ended their day of classes. Various class representatives said the same two commands everyday, and everyday, they were apathetically followed.

"Bow!"

However, lately the atmosphere at Kiyosumi High School had been charged with bridled excitement and anticipation. The school festival was just around the corner and most of the students had been eager to complete their preparations. No one was more aware of this than the student congress president herself, who quickly made her way to the student congress room as soon as their last teacher left the room.

The student congress was in charge of overseeing the entire festival, and this included making sure that every club, class, and any other affiliated organization was ready on time without any mishaps. This being a school with a student congress, however, rather than a student council, meant that the congress members had less authority than the average high school's counterpart. With that said, each congress member had to work extra hard to smooth any ruffled feathers while still maintaining order.

Not that Hisa ever had any problem with that.

She slid the door open to the student congress room and was unsurprised to see all of its members already assembled. Hisa grinned when they turned to see who had come in, and took her spot at the head of the table. The nearby whiteboard was filled with writing and diagrams. It seems that they had been busy in the past few minutes after classes ended. It made her a little proud.

"You're late, Miss President," the vice president, Takeda Masunori, quipped dryly.

"I'm right on time; what are you talking about?" She easily replied.

"Let's not waste time. We really have a deadline to keep and it looks like this year's going to be our busiest yet," another member cut in, nonplussed by the two's casual attitude.

"Secretary Junouichi's right," Hisa agreed amiably, as if she hadn't done anything wrong. "Today we'll be checking up on all of the clubs and classes to make sure they've got all the materials they need and that they're progressing at a reasonable rate. Of course, safety is also one of our top priorities, so be sure to double-check any sort of construction work and food preparations with the respective class representatives and club presidents. Furthermore, it's too soon for students to be staying on campus after the evening bell, so please make sure that everyone has gone home, or at least have left the gates by then. Any questions?"

"It's just more of the usual then, isn't it?" One of the girls commented, sounding bored.

"That's not really a question," Takeda replied before Hisa could say anything.

She grinned apologetically at Erika Junouichi's stern look for letting the group get sidetracked again.

"In any case, let's split up into pairs and get this done. We've got the advantage of having more members than your usual student council, so let's make use of it."

"But it's a student _congress_, president. Don't you even remember your own people?" One of the males spoke out theatrically. He was also doing double duty as one of the Drama Club's actors, just like she was also the president of the Mahjong Club. Then again, they were doing a play while the Mahjong Club was doing... nothing. Oh well.

"A thousand pardons," Hisa apologized in much of the same long-suffering tone. The rest of the room could only roll their eyes, but they all understood that their business was done here and it was time for them to do their jobs.

The president glanced towards Erika to confirm that they'd be partners this time, as she found the tall, stoic second year to be extremely efficient at recording and referencing data. That, and most of the other members found it hard to deal with her on their own, as she seemed to drag down everyone's disposition with her unrelenting seriousness. It was also fun to have Erika unintentionally play the 'bad cop' to her 'good cop', but she kept that fact to herself.

The secretary nodded and the other members started to leave. Hisa was located at the far end of the room, farthest away from the door, however, so she stayed back until it cleared out, as usual. Erika waited at her chair, expressionless, checking over the papers on her clipboard. The redhead was tempted to start humming. Maybe it would make the other girl react in annoyance. Then again, maybe not.

While she was mulling over this, one of the first years that helped out the congress from time to time managed to squeeze through into the room. She looked nervous, but then again, Hisa had been seen on national television more than once at this point due to the mahjong tournaments. It was almost expected that people around her would start treating her differently.

She grinned familiarly with the younger girl. "How's it going, Konoe-chan? Anything I can do?"

"A-Ah, no, I'm fine." The first year shook her head, her twin pigtails bouncing along with the movement. "But there's someone here to see you, Miss President, if you don't mind?"

"I know you're here to see me, but at least call me Hisa. It's been half a year already, right? It's a little cold to hear you call me so formally." The redhead winked, indicating she was only teasing. "But no, that's fine. Let'm come in."

She could almost feel Erika give off a silent sigh from next to her. Konoe reddened slightly, but didn't respond. Instead she moved aside to let the visitor step in gracefully, excusing herself to the students exiting around her.

Hisa blinked. "Mihoko-san!"

"Only the president gets such cute visitors. I wonder if I would have gotten the same treatment had I been voted president instead," Takeda grumbled good-naturedly. He, like Hisa, had also opted to wait for the rest of the room to leave before heading out himself.

The blonde guest smiled sheepishly as she bowed a greeting. "I-I'm sorry, but is this a bad time?"

Erika started to reply in what would certainly be considered an overly-blunt manner, but Hisa cut her off quickly.

"No, no, of course not! I've been waiting to hear from you, actually." She turned quickly to Takeda. "I'll leave things to you, then. Erika, you too."

The vice president rolled his eyes. "Nothing new here. Well, I got to see a pretty girl today, so I guess I don't really mind."

"Implying that the girls here are unattractive to begin with." The secretary pushed back a lock of her long black hair behind one of her ears. It seemed he had inadvertently pushed a button.

Hisa laughed. "He knows that we're out of his league, so he's hoping for some fresh meat to hit on, Erika. Maybe he'll have better luck if a girl could actually remember what his name was. It's Masanachi, isn't it?"

"It's Takeda Masunori, _thank you_," he replied dryly at the redhead, then turned to Mihoko, who was watching the exchanges with a mixture of amusement and bafflement. "And I'm at your service."

The president laughed again. They had all moved towards the exit at this point and, unavoidably, towards Mihoko. Hisa casually looped her arm around one of the blonde's elbows possessively and smirked.

"Sorry, but this special guest has a date with me today. Nice try."

"'D-Date?'" Mihoko echoed in embarrassed surprise.

"Ugh, this is only because you're the president. It's not like people actually like you, or anything. Don't you agree, Erika-chan?" Takeda tried to appeal to the other girl, but to no avail.

The tall girl gave him a flat look. "We're wasting time. Let's start with the Cooking Club. There are a lot of safety procedures and health regulations we need to go over with them."

The vice president shrugged helplessly but followed her out the door. "You know, this is why you can't get a boyfriend. You're so serious all the time. A man's got a heart that needs to be heard and you're definitely not listening to what mine's telling you, Erika-chan!"

"If my ears were malfunctioning, I would have checked them at a medical facility."

"Erika-chaaaaaan!"

"Please stop addressing me in such a familiar fashion."

Everyone knew he was just teasing her at this point, and paid no mind.

The two girls left at the student congress room's exit could only watch them head down the hall in amused silence. That was, until Mihoko realized her arm was still intertwined with Hisa's. She quickly disengaged herself, leaving the redhead slightly confused and hurt. Hisa quickly masked it with forced cheerfulness and smoothly slid her hands into the pockets of her skirt to hide her awkwardness.

"So! Shall I give you a tour? There's not much to really see at the moment, since we're still in the beginning stages of the festival preparation, but maybe we'll run across something interesting. What do you think?"

Mihoko had been watching her intently as she tried to be as engaging as possible. For some reason, it made the redhead feel a little self-conscious. Was she overdoing it? It felt like years since the two had talked to each other, and their last meeting didn't exactly end on a high note.

"That sounds like a good idea. I'm looking forward to it," Mihoko replied calmly.

Actually, she wasn't really sure what kind of note it was. The blonde had seemed different at the end of the last tournament. Or had she? Hisa wasn't sure if her eyes had been playing tricks on her that day, but for a moment, just an instant, Mihoko shone with an aura of gentle nobility that she had never seen before. It had been quickly replaced by an attitude of resigned acceptance, as a queen would accept her defeat in a hard-fought war. Then again, maybe it really had been her imagination. She had never doubted her senses before, so there was no reason for her to start now. Why did she imagine something so elaborate, anyway?

If anything, it made her want to see more of the girl. Whether it be for a chance to see it again, or from a subconscious underlying reason, she wasn't sure, but the thoughts hadn't left her mind since that day.

School started soon afterwards, and she had been busy with congress work and getting documents approved by their relevant teachers, which kept her mind occupied after school. During classes, however, she had no such respite, and even less while she was at home. She couldn't even relax during mahjong, the few times she appeared in the club room. Hisa had let the club cool down and help their respective classes prepare for the festival. It was good to take a break once in a while, she had reasoned, but for her the opposite seemed to be true.

The Kiyosumi leader wasn't sure if the blonde next to her noticed any of this. Normally she was too self-conscious herself, but today the blonde was actively putting distance between them. Hisa was still confused as to why. Had she somehow insulted her at the tournament? Her memories towards the end felt a little fuzzy and she couldn't be sure of what she had said or done. It was frustrating. She hated not knowing things. People were easy to understand, so why was Mihoko an exception?

Well, all she had to do was observe while bridging the gap. Again. She just had to be patient, as always, and wait for her chance. There was always something new when it came to the other girl, and Hisa had no doubt she'd find out what it was this time.

Deciding that physical contact shouldn't be risked again after what just happened, Hisa gestured towards the opposite hallway of where Erika and Takeda had disappeared.

"This area's mostly just the third years, except for a few classes that are taking the advanced courses. We're still trying to update our curriculum, but as it is, we're seen as something of a joke in the academic community. In the end, we had to make some advanced subjects to help those students who felt they could do more," she explained as they walked.

"I see. That sounds difficult. Aren't there any cram schools in the area that can help make up the difference?" Mihoko asked seriously, able to put aside the tense atmosphere between them by focusing on the impersonal topic introduced by Hisa.

The redhead nodded, then shrugged. "We do have some cram schools, but this being the outskirts of Tokyo, we just don't have much to offer. All of the better-funded facilities are in the center of the city, and we just can't keep up with those. We have a few particularly gifted teachers that are helping to build up the Kiyosumi name, but that's all we have right now. It can't compare to Kazekoshi, of course, but I'm really proud of what we can do so far. A handful of our students have even managed to rank nationally on the exams."

"Including you, I assume," the blonde said with a knowing smile.

Hisa felt relieved at seeing it. She thought she had somehow angered the other girl, but if Mihoko could still smile, then there must be some other reason for her changed behavior.

"It'd look bad if the student congress president couldn't even do that much, right?" The redhead smirked. "Although, I saw you on that list as well. You're nothing to laugh at, either."

Hisa had been tempted to be far more direct in her compliments, but the current Mihoko looked like she might brush it off. She missed the girl's embarrassed blushes. They felt so much more honest than what she was used to, and now the girl was putting up a wall between them. It was so frustrating!

"Ah, thank you." The Kazekoshi guest bowed slightly in modesty and swiftly changed the topic. "Was there any class's activity in particular that you were looking forward to, Takei-san?"

Long gone was the stuttering that accompanied her current family name, replaced by an almost impersonal formality. It felt cold; a feeling she had never associated with the kind girl before. She stumbled at what to say for a moment before catching herself with a rueful smile. Honesty might work best here.

"Ah, sorry about that," Hisa apologized unapologetically. "I completely forgot what I was doing once we started talking. It's been a really long time since we last saw each other, right? I've missed you."

"Th-That's-!"

Mihoko's ensuing blush only made the redhead's grin grow even wider. Changing tactics was the right course of action, after all. That same shyly cute girl was still there, hidden beneath a stronger exterior of self-control. Even now, her blush was fading fast as she closed her eyes to steady herself. Why did she need to be so guarded? Hisa wondered just what had happened to the other girl in the past weeks since school had resumed.

The blonde inched out an uncomfortable smile. "Takei-san, it has scarcely been a month. I'm sure we've both been too busy to really notice the time fly by. It makes me happy to hear that you were thinking of me, however."

Not too happy to let herself show it, apparently. This was quickly becoming awkward and Hisa shrugged, as if to let the matter drop. Truth be told, she was more than disappointed at this turn of events, but at least the other girl wasn't running away and was still willing to continue the tour, what little there was to see.

"Maybe I just have too much free time, then. To answer your question earlier, I'm actually a little interested in what the Cooking Club's doing this year. It's supposed to be some sort of innovative multi-cultural food stand. It's pretty rare to see kids these days experimenting with international foods and mixing it together with what we normally eat, so I'm excited to see how it'll turn out."

Mihoko listened to her cheerful commentary as if nothing unusual had just happened between them. Hisa then leaned in conspiratorially, hoping to provoke another reaction from her.

"Honestly, I had originally given them permission to do whatever they wanted, as long as the safety regulations were met, but the rest of the student congress overruled me. I guess we have more old men posing here as students than I thought. We can't keep clinging to tradition, right?"

"Maybe." The other girl blushed slightly at the proximity, but otherwise remained unfazed. She responded wryly, "It's not like we can just discard them, either. Moving forward also means knowing where one's past lies."

Hisa raised an eyebrow at the usually meek girl's tone. It was surprising, yes, but it was also what she had been waiting for. Someone to refute and counter her ideas. She knew the blonde was more than capable of being her equal, and all it took was just a little more time. Was she challenging Hisa? Is that why she was being uncharacteristically cold? Well, relatively speaking. To anyone watching, they were chatting together amiably enough.

"That's true," she agreed readily. "However, 'forward' implies that there are only two directions, right? There's no reason to limit ourselves when there's the whole world to discover and conquer. Recreating our dreams on a physical plane... isn't that what being young is all about?"

"To an extent," Mihoko nodded, "but having a sense of the present reality around you is also important. Keeping your feet on the ground helps you remember what you're doing and where you're going. We can never be sure if there will be someone to catch us when we fall, so it's best to be ready."

Hisa blinked, but smiled in appreciation of her level-headedness. Most people would have gotten swept up in her charisma, but the Kazekoshi captain had no qualms about criticizing her objectively. It made her feel a little warm inside. She had to be careful, or else her competitive spirit might put their friendship in danger, even if she was fairly certain the blonde was far stronger than she looked.

"I think I'll be fine if you're the one catching me, Mihoko-san," she replied with a wink.

"I wonder if that's really true..." The blonde lowered her eyebrows slightly in doubt and - was that guilt that flashed across her eyes?

"Of course! I have no reason to think otherwise. You said I was an important person to you, right? That's what friendship is all about, and it'd make me happy if you relied on me, as well."

That was strange. Hisa thought that saying something like that would cheer the other girl up, but it only seemed to worsen the blonde's disposition. She blinked. Was she asking something unreasonable? She wanted to apologize, but she had no idea what she'd be apologizing for. At least that incident with her uncle had a clear cause and was solved easily enough. All he had to do was get over her pride. Was her pride causing her to assume too much again?

"Ah, it's... I'm okay, Takei-san. I think I was just overcome with your sincerity," Mihoko offered with an apologetic smile at Hisa's concerned glance.

The Kiyosumi president didn't buy it, but the other girl was trying to save face. If they were in private, she might have brought it up, but far be it for her to shame her guest in front of the student body. Even so, it annoyed her. Why did Mihoko have to lie, especially after what she had just said? Did she think her words were just for show?

Hisa bit back the urge to sigh in frustration. It felt like every step she took put her farther back than where she started. Time for a new strategy, such as actually giving a proper tour. She looped her arm around Mihoko's elbow again, heedless of her protests, and marched them towards one of the club rooms.

"T-Takei-san!"

"It's fine, don't worry so much. Your cute forehead's going to get all wrinkled if you keep frowning like that. I invited you here to have fun, and all I've been doing is talking to you inconsiderately without doing my job. I'm the student congress president, and that means I'm the best suited to show you a good time here at Kiyosumi!"

"Well, the bare bones of Kiyosumi, anyway. Like I said, we're still not done with the preparations yet," She added as an afterthought.

Mihoko giggled, her composure finally relaxing. "Thank you."

"Ah," Hisa blinked at the sight, and nearly shook her head to gather her thoughts. "It's fine, I said. Anyway, this is the Drama Club. We actually have one of the congress members as its lead actor, but we try to act as if we don't know him. He's a little weird."

The club's occupants had looked up at their entrance and had returned to their work in disinterest. They were used to the president checking up on them at random intervals, and she rarely bothered them unless it was necessary. Said lead actor, however, always took it upon himself to make a spectacle every time she came by.

"Oh, sweet mother Gaea! What cruel blasphemies dost thou priestess spout? Your son has been gravely injured by such poisonous words!"

Hisa gave a knowing look at the blonde before turning to face him. "Your Old English needs some work, and never mind about the pronunciation."

He pouted for a moment before quickly regaining his composure. Admittedly, it was hard to have composure in the costume he was being fitted for to begin with, one of a very colorful and feathery bird, but he seemed to pull it off nevertheless. It was a fairly impressive feat.

"If you're not going to introduce us to the new member of your harem, Miss President, then you might as well leave," he said with a sniff.

Said president gave him a flat look and leaned in to whisper to Mihoko, "See? He's mad that I reacted normally. Definitely a weird person, right?" She straightened up after making her guest smile, and raised her voice to answer him.

"Don't be silly. I'm here to show off our favorite politician-turned-lead-actor's renowned acting abilities. We need to make a good impression on our guests if we want them to spread word of your skills, right everyone?"

"Ah, he's got a point, though. If you stay around here too long, more girls will just join your harem. We're shorthanded as it is, Takei-san," one of the students working on a stage prop stated with a friendly grin.

"That's right!"

"I dunno, though... Compared to you boys, the president is just so cool!" One of the girls said jokingly.

"Yeah, maybe we should join the student congress while we still can. She's graduating this year, so there's not much time left," another added.

"You can't be serious! She's a _girl_!" Another boy shouted in protest.

"Well, girls have needs that only other girls can fulfill, you know...?"

Some of the students laughed, and others joined in the bantering, but no one took any of it seriously. Mihoko took in the playful scene with a sense of wonder that shone clearly on her face. It seemed that the redhead's latest tactic had worked well, and she was confident that the rest of the visit would progress smoothly.

"Um, Takei-san?"

"Yes, what is it?" Mihoko's hesitant voice snapped Hisa's attention back from her internal gloating.

"May I ask what Lead-Actor-san's name is?"

He seemed to have heard the quiet question and quickly formed an elaborate pose, much to the protest of the girl who was fitting his costume.

"Ah-ha! My dear woman, you have inquired well, for I am-!"

"-Shirou Kinukawa, the biggest egomaniac you'll find on campus," Hisa cut him off dryly.

"Coming from you, that's quite an accomplishment, if I do say so myself," Shirou replied with a sniff, annoyed by his stolen thunder.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Kinukawa-san," Mihoko greeted with a bow. "I'll look forward to seeing everyone's hard work during the festival."

"Uh, y-you too," he answered, dumbstruck by her politeness.

Well, Hisa reasoned, in a school as casual as this, she shouldn't be surprised at this turn of events. Honestly, it just made her want to eat the girl next to her right up. She was just too cute!

"We'll see you then, ojou-chan!" One of the boys called out.

"Get out of here, president! You're gonna make that girl jealous if you stick around here too long," one of the earlier girls said.

"I'm going, I'm going! Honestly, kids have no respect these days," the redhead said to the ceiling in mock-exasperation.

"That was fun," Mihoko said after they slid the door closed behind them. "Is everyone always so friendly?"

"More or less," Hisa agreed. "We're a small school, so it's easier to form closer bonds with everyone. You know, if you ever get lonely, you could always transfer here. We'd be happy to have you," she teased.

"You know I can't do that..." the other girl responded reasonably, smiling.

"Well, it was worth a shot. We only have half a year left, anyway, but I'd make sure it would be the most exciting six months of your life."

"Are you sure about that? What happens if you fall short?" Mihoko teased back uncharacteristically.

Hisa blinked for a moment, then smirked. "I wouldn't. I have confidence in who you are."

"But do I have confidence in myself, I wonder...?"

The last words were barely spoken, and the Kiyosumi president wasn't sure if she had heard them at all. Regardless, she didn't like the other girl's reaction and she impulsively hugged her and pinched her cheek.

"I hope you're not getting tired yet, because there are still a few more things I want to show you. Come on!"

Mihoko rubbed her cheek in surprise and mutely nodded in agreement.

It was nice to be able to show the blonde what she had accomplished, especially as someone in a position of power in this school, but she wanted to enjoy a future with her even more. One where they would walk the same path together at the same pace. Constantly pushing each other forwards and taking each day as it came. Was it possible? Hisa wondered.

There was no reason she couldn't make it so. She was perfection, after all. At least, that's what she'd like to believe.


	22. Chapter 22

I had rewritten this chapter multiple times. Not happy with it, but the show must go on, as they say.

Ah, I have no idea how Japanese schools work. As usual, any corrections would be appreciated.

Thanks for reading!

* * *

Hisa moved her head slightly as her eyes blinked open. The early morning sun flickered through a gap in her window shades. A glance at the bedside clock told her that it was still a little past seven in the morning. This was new. Usually her alarm blared into her ears and it took her a few minutes of listening to music before she could muster up the will to open her eyes. There were worse things than waking up early on a Sunday.

Remote, remote, remote...

Ah, there it was. She spotted it behind her bedside clock. She pressed the power button on her tv and grabbed for her phone in her usual morning ritual. Check her emails, check the news, then check the weather. On most days, nothing interesting ever came up, but once in a while she'd hear something about a fight in the rougher parts of town, though the media rarely dropped any names. It depended on the location and the timing, but she was usually able to guess whether or not her people were involved.

Two emails, and no breaking news. One was from Hitoshi, and the other was from Fujita. She shrugged as she dragged herself off to the bathroom. If nothing was on the news, she could afford to wait a few minutes to read her emails, especially the one from the older woman. She doubted _that _one was particularly important.

Hisa returned to her room, one hand brushing her teeth absentmindedly as she opened up her phone to read Hitoshi's message. She prepared herself for something inane, but she admitted that it was equally as likely to be something important.

"_If you see anything on the news, don't pay any attention. Things are going as planned."_

She frowned. He was being unusually cryptic. Was his phone being monitored? There wasn't anything reported, either. Were they trying to do some sort of publicity stunt? She hadn't heard of any such plans. If anything, they'd always tried to stay away from the media. It set Hisa's teeth on edge. He was doing something foolish, and thought it was a good idea to keep her out of it. He probably thought he was being chivalrous or something just as useless.

No, she had to give him some credit. He would never intentionally treat her as anything but an equal. Maybe he wanted to prove he could pull off something big without her, that he was reliable? Being cryptic indicated anything but reliability. She smirked.

Well, she'll confront him about it later. If he wanted to surprise her, then he'll just have to get used to being disappointed. She had her own ways of getting information, too.

* * *

Hisa gave her old companion a long look.

"I don't mind celebrating your new job, but why did you have to bring alcohol on a school night?"

Fujita took a sip of said beverage. "So weekends are fine?"

The redhead sighed and shook her head. "I don't have time to deal with you when you're drunk. The school festival's right around the corner, Mihoko-san's being an ice princess, and Hitoshi's even worse than usual. I swear, all of you are making me look like the sanest person around."

She sat across her friend at the kitchen table with a twitch at the corner of her lip. The older of the two raised an eyebrow and nodded towards the rather generously sized sake bottle.

Oh, what the hell. Why not? Hisa shrugged almost helplessly before smirking.

"Give me that."

"Woah, hold on! What did I tell you about drinking straight from the bottle?" Fujita protested.

"I don't want to hear that from someone who can't even keep her room clean," Hisa snapped back, but obligingly left the table to get another cup.

"I can't really help you about the other two, but Kazekoshi's little princess has been flipping between hot and cold during the club meetings, too," the smoker said helpfully.

The redhead lowered her eyebrows in thought as she returned, pouring herself a cup. It had been a long time since she last had any alcohol. Ever since the four first years joined this year, it had been one thing after another. Why would she need any alcohol when things were going just fine? Then again, things had been getting worse lately. She needed to stop pushing it at the back of her mind like a little kid. Everything was starting to get on her nerves. Hisa took a gulp, making a face as the slight bitterness lingered in her mouth. Damn, she forgot that Fujita liked her sake warm, not cold.

"I can't figure her out at all. One moment she's all blushing and taking everyone into her arms, and the next she's using keigo and behaving like every word between us was only business. I thought we were friends!"

Fujita blinked. The older woman poured her another cup, partly out of curiosity, and partly out of sympathy. What would she say as she became progressively more inebriated? A sober Hisa was exasperating enough, but she usually let down her guard enough for some of her honesty to get through with enough alcohol. That was the past, anyway. There was no guarantee things would stay the same as before, but it was still worth a try.

"Well, that's enough about me. How's that job of yours? I hear a lot of things about Kubo lately; mostly unrelated to mahjong," Hisa asked, unceremoniously shoving aside her rantings.

Fujita mentally sighed. So much for that plan. Soon she'd be able to hold her alcohol and maybe even beat her in a drinking contest. It was a mildly disappointing thought. Hisa was growing up and would no longer be corruptible. If anything, from the sounds of things, she was the one who was corrupting Fukuji, or trying to, at any rate.

"I've worked with Kubo in the past, and she's never brought me any problems. She's a bit more carefree than I'd like, but that's her business." Fujita shrugged noncommittally, starting to pack in her pipe, then continued, "Kazekoshi isn't a bad place to work at. My official title is the 'Assistant Coach' but they all know I'm just there as a replacement for Kubo when she leaves."

Hisa raised an eyebrow. "Technically you don't even need to be there until next year, if that's the case."

"It's good to have an idea of what I'm getting myself into," she replied somewhat dryly, taking an unfeminine gulp from her cup and pouring herself another. "Hey, don't you have any proper sake cups? Drinking from tea cups is a little..." She gestured emphatically.

"Don't complain. I let you in here from the goodness of my heart, out of the pouring rain. I thought we taught you better than that," the redhead quipped in mock-disappointment.

"You're so full of it. My grandfather taught me everything I know, rest his soul," Fujita replied, half-annoyed. The alcohol was starting to get to her. Unfortunately, she tended to be a sad drunk, albeit a dry-eyed one.

Hisa opted to stay quiet on the subject, knowing that any reply could be misunderstood, even if she was joking. The Takei's had taken in Fujita into their household, back when they were still called Ueno and debt-free. The older girl had wandered onto the streets, a young teenager who had suffered a series of unfortunate events, with the death of her grandfather, her guardian, being the most recent (barring the Ueno's fall). Looking back on it, she could say that it was like bringing in a lost puppy, with the way she had asked her family if the girl could stay with them. It might have been one of the saddest days in Fujita's memory, but Hisa was overjoyed to have a proper companion. Come to think of it, she really did treat the older girl like a pet. It was a strange realization.

"I'm glad you're here with us," she sincerely said instead.

"Yeah..."

"So, did you meet any cute students?" Hisa asked with a wink.

"You're hilarious," Fujita replied flatly, picking up the new topic easily. She must have wanted something else to talk about just as badly as the younger girl.

"Well, with the way you were hugging Koromo at the training camp, what was I supposed to think?"

"She's like a human-sized stuffed animal. Can you blame me?" She said defensively.

Hisa merely shrugged and leaned back into her chair with a smirk.

"So what's this about Mihoko-san behaving differently in the club?" She changed the subject abruptly once more.

"Oy, don't judge me! You're secretly laughing, aren't you?" Fujita accused in mock-anger.

"I didn't say anything. I'm just worried about the Kazekoshi captain," Hisa replied, not entirely untrue.

"Fine, fine. Well, she's been arguing with Kubo more often lately, though the coach isn't exactly passive to begin with." The smoker paused, then added thoughtfully, "I think she likes her."

"What?" The redhead's eye twitched, and a surge of outrage rose up in her. She clamped it down reflexively.

"No, no, not like that. Japan's hardly filled with sexual deviants like us, you know," Fujita hastily explained. "I meant that I think she sees the princess as some sort of puzzle. A toy. I can't explain this; you're better at this people garbage."

"That just makes her sound like a pedophile. Are you sure this woman shouldn't be locked up?" Hisa asked tiredly, her wave of anger already passing. It was slowly being replaced with a sense of unease she couldn't identify.

"Hm... Honestly, she reminds me a little bit of you. It's like you both like to tinker with people. Isn't that why you're talking with Fukuji to begin with?"

"People are interesting to begin with; that doesn't mean I treat them like science experiments," Hisa replied evasively, secretly annoyed that there was someone comparable to her near Mihoko.

"You could always pay us a visit. I'm sure Kubo would be happy, relatively speaking," Fujita suggested.

"'Us', is it? You traitor. You're planning on stealing Kiyosumi's undefeatable strategies, aren't you?"

"If you're really that invincible, then it wouldn't matter if we used the same thing against you, right?" Fujita quipped.

"...That's true. After all, you don't have me on the team. I'm worth at least 50 members of the Kazekoshi mahjong club," Hisa boasted, finishing off with a drink.

"Don't take them so lightly. You'd be surprised at how much they've improved. Fukuji's been seriously working on some new strategies with Kubo. For all of their arguing, they make a pretty scary team when they're trying."

Hisa sighed inwardly, thinking of her team. It wasn't that they were hopeless; everyone knew that was hardly the case. It's just that they lacked a unifying force. The power of friendship was a beautiful thing, but someone needed to be the bad guy if they were to get anything done. It made her worry about what they'll do next year without her. Would Mako be enough to drive them towards even further heights?

She turned her attention back to the conversation, outwardly smirking.

"That's _if_ I visit. I'm far too busy with the student congress and the mahjong club for that. There's the school festival, too, and I need to prepare for my entrance exams," she reminded her friend. "Besides, the Abe-gumi might be doing something reckless, so I need to make sure Hitoshi doesn't go too far. I think Katase might be unaware of what's going on, but I can't be sure. They're both a lack a little self-awareness."

"School barely bothers you; don't exaggerate. As for Hitoshi-kun, he told me that they're planning on some countermeasures for those attacks we keep hearing about. We think it's a new group that's trying to assert its presence. There could be a war soon, so stay safe. Well, that's what he said. I personally don't think anything less than a meteor could break through that thick skull of yours," Fujita finished with a raised eyebrow.

"Don't joke like that," Hisa said seriously, her vision starting to sway as she firmly placed a hand on the table for emphasis. "A war is nothing to laugh at. Do you realize how many men we could lose? It'll make us look even worse with the civilians if they get caught in the crossfire, too. Can't they negotiate peacefully?"

"Wake up, Hisa. This isn't a game. We can't play the knight-in-shining armor here. It's pointless to try and negotiate when they refuse to be caught. They keep killing themselves before we get the chance to ask them anything. It's frustrating, I know, but you're not the only one worried over this."

"Ah, right." Hisa blinked, realizing she wasn't thinking before opening her mouth. "Is he being bugged?"

"'Bugged'?" Fujita frowned, unsure for a moment before understanding dawned on her. "Oh. Maybe. It never came up. He just said to explain things to you if I saw you."

"And it took you six cups of sake before you did. You're so reliable," she replied dryly.

"Hey, I've got a stable income! Let's focus on what's important here. Kanpai!"

"Kanpai." Hisa toasted with an amused grin, silently mulling over everything she had learned tonight. She had a lot of work to do.

* * *

Hisa made her way up the stairs of the mahjong club. Usually she came later, after the preparations for the day were over to remind her friends that it was time to leave the campus. Today, however, she was forced to leave early by her underclassmen, citing that she should be busy studying instead of helping out. That was fine, except that she found it terribly ironic that they waited until after she had drawn out plans and printed out most of the necessary forms before more or less kicking her out. Not that she minded. It was fun watching everyone work so hard, after all.

As she rounded the corner to face the club room door, she saw Mako waiting for her against the wall. She grinned at the sight. Was she trying to look cool, with the afternoon sun playing on her green hair and her arms crossed while she looked out the window at the opposite end? Admittedly, it wasn't a bad try, but it was hard to look anything but normal in their school uniforms.

"Yo. What's up?" Hisa greeted when Mako noticed she was there.

"Oh, hey buchou! I didn't think you'd come by this early," she replied, her eyes twinkling with amused exasperation at the club president's arrival. The third year was always doing unexpected things, and while Mako should be used to it by now, she wasn't.

Hisa shrugged. "I got kicked out of the student council room. It looks like they're encouraging me to be lazy, and who am I to refuse them?"

Mako raised an eyebrow. "Buchou, don't you have entrance exams to worry about?"

"Not at all," the redhead replied deftly with a grin.

"...You're not attending university?"

"Oh, I am. I just don't need to worry about the entrance exams."

"I... see." Mako blinked, gathering her thoughts. "Ah, right. The rest of the mahjong club and I have decided that you're banned from the clubroom until you've taken your entrance exams. So, please do your best, buchou. We'll be rooting for you."

Hisa laughed. "_Et tu, Brutus?_ I'm grievously wounded by this betrayal, but you do what you must, and I shall do the same."

"Still the same as ever," Mako shook her head. "Please take this seriously, though, and let me know if you need anything. Really."

"I will, thank you. I still don't know what I would have done if you hadn't shown up last year."

"D-Don't start getting all sentimental. I'm not letting you in, no matter how much you start to sweet-talk me," the green-haired girl stammered awkwardly.

"I'm just saying it as it is," she replied with a wave before heading back out.

* * *

After one full afternoon of studying, Hisa declared to herself that there was no point in doing this if she had no idea what school she was planning on entering to begin with. She didn't feel like picking a school yet, and frankly, she had no real idea of what she wanted to do after university. There was the possibility of doing something that would put the Abe-gumi greatly in her debt, which would nullify all of the Ueno's previous debts and pull her out of the marriage, but the real question was how to accomplish this. It wasn't something that could be learned in school, nor did she have the luxury of time after graduating from university. Studying abroad might be an option. She could help secure "bases" for the Abe-gumi to operate at in someplace in the Americas. Central America seemed to be a very viable option, for various reasons, but their success there depended on how aggressive the other gangs were. Unfortunately, it would be suspicious for her to go there as a transfer student when the United States was a more popular destination. Well, she could worry about that later.

With that decision made, she went to the headmaster of Kiyosumi for something, anything, for her to do.

"Come in," he beckoned after her swift knocks.

Hisa walked in and bowed shortly. "Good afternoon, sir."

"Ah, Takei-kun. Perfect timing."

The slightly balding man peered at her through his oval glasses. The wrinkles around his eyes deepened as he smiled at her. He motioned for her to take a seat in one of three plush chairs across from his desk.

"I've been meaning to ask a favor of you, but that can wait until later. Now, what can I help you with?" He asked kindly.

Hisa sat down quickly and placed her hands in her lap. She looked at him seriously.

"The truth of the matter is, sir, I was actually here to ask if there was anything that needed doing."

He blinked, then abruptly laughed.

"We're really blessed to have you as a student here, Takei-kun. Only you would ask for more work during this time of year. Shouldn't you be studying for your exams, young lady?"

She inwardly cringed. If one more person said that to her, she might just end up throwing one of her study guides at them. What kind of society were they living in, anyway? It's not humane to expect someone to study six hours a day, or more, for months on end. There must be a better way!

Hisa breathed out, careful to mask her irritation. She smiled sheepishly instead and thanked him for the compliments.

"I'm ahead of my study schedule, sir, and I believe a change of pace might do me good. They say it's healthy for your mind to change gears every so often, right?" She grinned for effect. Ah, when did her motions start to become scripted?

The headmaster nodded amicably. "That's so, that's so. It's good to hear you're on top of things. In that case, I'll discuss that favor I had mentioned earlier. Do you remember that request you put in for improved science facilities, as well as better club rooms?"

At her nod, he continued, "Well, it seems that one of the local contracting companies has decided to sponsor us. We'll be starting construction next spring, if all goes well. However, they need a tour of the campus, and I was wondering if you'd be interested in playing tour guide for them?"

"Yes, sir!"

Her previous annoyance all but dissipated at the news. Kiyosumi would finally be recognized as a serious school after this! She will have graduated by the time construction starts, but it still made her proud that she helped to bring about such a positive change for her backwater school.

Hold on. Why would a construction company take an interest in them to begin with? It's not unknown for the local community to support their educational institutions, but it rarely happened in rural areas like theirs. Even stranger was the headmaster's lack of explanation. It's true that he wasn't required to tell her everything that happened at this school, but she'd like to believe that their relationship was a little more friendly than most in their situation. Was he hiding something, or was he just happy enough to accept such an offer without asking questions?

Hisa decided it would be best to inquire later; perhaps from the construction workers themselves. She bowed and made her exit. The tour would take place in two days, which meant it would be during festival preparations. It wasn't the best time to be doing something like this, but then, it _would_ highlight which areas were in dire need of renovations. She hoped no accidents would happen during that time period.


End file.
